A 43-year-old man is accused of killing his wife during a dispute inside their home.
CLOVERLEAF, Texas — Three children hid inside a Harris County home on May 2 as their father allegedly shot their mother during an argument, leaving the 39-year-old woman dead and her husband facing a murder charge.
The children, ages 3, 8 and 13, were not physically hurt, investigators said. Their mother, Yanira Marin de Romero, was found with multiple gunshot wounds inside a bathroom at the family’s home on Texarkana Street. Their father, Jose Arquimides Romero, 43, was detained at the residence after calling 911 and telling authorities he had shot his wife. The case is being handled as a domestic violence homicide by the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
The children’s presence shaped the first public account of the shooting. Local officials said they were inside the home when gunfire started shortly after 1 p.m. on a Saturday. They hid during the shooting and survived without physical injuries. Deputies who arrived after the 911 call found Romero still at the property and took him into custody without incident. Investigators have not said where in the home the children hid, whether they heard the argument or how long they remained hidden before deputies reached them.
Authorities said Marin de Romero and Romero had been arguing before the shooting. The sheriff’s office said she was in a bathroom when Romero fired multiple times. Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said Romero was reportedly upset because she was not taking his back pain seriously enough. The sheriff’s office later said Romero told homicide detectives he shot and killed her because she did not take his back pain seriously. Officials have not released a longer account of the argument or said whether anyone else tried to intervene before the shots were fired.
The killing broke into public view first as a local domestic violence call and then as a murder case. KPRC reported the shooting happened on Texarkana Street in Cloverleaf, a community just east of Houston. Deputies found the victim dead at the scene, and Romero was booked into the Harris County Jail. The sheriff’s office identified the victim in one public update as Yanira Nafin, while other reports and family references identified her as Yanira Marin de Romero. Authorities have not publicly explained the difference in names.
Family members described Marin de Romero’s death as a sudden rupture in a household they believed was steady. One relative wrote after the shooting that the family was shattered and unable to accept the reality of her death. The relative said the couple had known each other since adolescence and had moved forward together through life. In another line, the relative wrote that their children “will no longer have their parents together.” The posts did not describe any known history of violence, and investigators have not released information about prior calls at the home.
Romero’s case now turns from the scene of the shooting to the courts. He is charged with murder, a felony accusation that will require prosecutors to show evidence of an unlawful killing and the required criminal intent under Texas law. A charge is not a conviction. Romero is presumed innocent unless a judge or jury finds him guilty. Local reports said he was expected to appear in court the Tuesday after the shooting. No attorney information was immediately released in the public accounts reviewed.
Investigators are expected to rely on several pieces of evidence already described publicly. The 911 call may show what Romero said immediately after the shooting. Deputies’ body camera footage, dispatch records and crime scene reports may help establish what officers found when they arrived. Homicide detectives also are likely to document the location of the body, the position of shell casings, the firearm, statements from people in the home and any medical examiner findings. Officials have not released the autopsy findings or a full probable cause affidavit.
The case also left unanswered questions about the children’s care after the shooting. Authorities have not released who took custody of them, whether child welfare officials were contacted or whether counseling or family services were arranged. The sheriff’s office has kept the children’s names private, a common practice when minors are witnesses or survivors in a violent case. Public statements have focused instead on the homicide charge, the alleged admission to detectives and the fact that the children were not struck by gunfire.
The shooting remains under investigation in Harris County. Romero is the only person publicly charged, and the next formal updates are expected through court hearings, charging documents or additional statements from the sheriff’s office.
Author note: Last updated June 2, 2026.