Dallas police arrest suspects in viral New Year’s Eve bridge shooting

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DALLAS - Two men have been arrested in connection with a viral New Year’s Eve gunfire incident on a downtown bridge, while a third man has been charged in a separate road-rage shooting involving children, Dallas police announced Wednesday.

The investigation began after social media videos, viewed worldwide, showed individuals firing weapons from the Margaret McDermott Bridge on Interstate 30. Detectives recovered more than 100 shell casings from the scene, just west of the city’s downtown core.

The bridge incident

Anthony Acevedo, 20, and Jose AlarconSanchez, 18, both of Grand Prairie, and 25-year-old Anderson Derce Lara (Source: Dallas Police Department)

Police identified the suspects in the bridge shooting as Anthony Acevedo, 20, and Jose Alarcon-Sanchez, 18, both residents of Grand Prairie. Investigators determined that Alarcon-Sanchez had been arrested by Grand Prairie police for a similar offense in that city during the early morning hours of New Year’s Day.

Both men face charges of discharging a firearm in certain municipalities, a Class A misdemeanor. Acevedo has since been released on bond, while Alarcon-Sanchez remains in custody on an immigration hold.

Road rage arrest

The investigation led detectives to Anderson Derce Lara, 25.

While investigating the bridge gunfire, authorities found evidence linking Derce Lara to a violent road-rage incident in November. In that case, police say Derce Lara fired multiple rounds into a vehicle occupied by three adults and three children, the youngest of whom was 3 years old.

A search warrant executed by the ATF resulted in the recovery of several firearms, including the specific rifles seen in the viral New Year's Eve footage.

Derce Lara faces six counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a first-degree felony. Like Alarcon-Sanchez, he is currently being held on an immigration hold.

What they're saying:

"If you put lives at risk in Dallas, we will identify you, investigate thoroughly, and hold you accountable," Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux said in a statement.

Authorities emphasized that while the suspects did not live in Dallas, they chose the city as the site for their "reckless" behavior.

"These individuals did not live in Dallas, but they came to Dallas to create this criminal activity," Comeaux said. "If you put lives at risk in Dallas, we will investigate thoroughly and hold you accountable."