A one-month-old baby boy in San Antonio, TX is currently fighting for his life in a hospital after being shot in the chest, allegedly by his mother’s boyfriend.
Mom Daisy Delacruz, 18, gave birth to her son, Armani Cazares, on February 25, 2020.
She broke up with Armani’s biological father long before he was born and began dating Lance Tello, Jr. when she was about four months pregnant.
Delacruz tells Fox San Antonio that, initially, Tello treated Armani like his own son. Lately, however, he had begun to show signs of stress stemming from six-day work weeks at the Maruchan Texas Inc. ramen noodle factory.
One night, according to Delacruz, Tello came home and something was off. He told her that he didn’t want to hold the baby, got very quiet, and left to shower. She added:
“He just flipped. He was normal, and then, he just turned into someone else. Completely silent. Completely silent with a Bible.”
Delacruz says she attempted to ask Tello what was wrong, but his mood only worsened. At 2 a.m. the following morning, Tello got out of bed, looked at himself in the mirror, and then grabbed a gun from under the mattress.
“He has no emotion in his face. He’s just looking at me with this evil look,” Delacruz said.
Tello then turned the gun on Delacruz, at which point she says she told him, “You’re not going to shoot my baby.”
Allegedly, Tello then fired a shot. “I turn around and I see my son,” she continued. “My son is on the floor and he’s turning blue,” Delacruz said, noting that the gunfire made her temporarily “deaf.”
Tragically, before leaving the house, Tello also allegedly shot his 49-year-old mother and his sister, both of whom survived and are expected to recover. Delacruz was not shot.
Unfortunately, the prognosis for baby Armani is not so bright. “Now the doctors are telling me he’s not going to make it,” Delacruz said. “That there’s no hope. That he’s practically brain dead. It’s a nightmare. My son was here and now he’s not.”
Delacruz’s sister, Michelle Montez, has started a GoFundMe to raise money for Armani’s medical care. In an update to the page on April 5, she wrote:
“Baby Armani remains critically ill. He was shot in a senseless act. The bullet entered his chest and exit the back of his neck. Affected his lungs and shattered his vertebrae. He was in surgery for 3 1/2 hours,doctors say he suffering some brain damage due to the lack of oxygen.
We are trying to keep strong in this difficult time. We are heartbroken beyond words can express. Please keep Baby Armani in your prayers.”
– GoFundMe
She posted another update on April 9 with slightly more hopeful news:
Baby Armani is a little fighter. The doctors also are amazed he’s even made it this far. We believe in miracles we believe God can breathe new life into Armani. We are not giving up. Thank you all for the prayers and donations. We will keep everyone updated as much as possible. Once again thank you to everyone.
– GoFundMe
Tello was arrested near the location of the house where the crime occured and is currently being held at the Bexar County Jail on a $500,000 bond.
Meanwhile, Delacruz is just trying to make it through this horrifying ordeal. She says that she was told she would never be able to have kids and therefore considers Armani a miracle. Of Tello, she says, “I was angry at him. And then my anger just turned into sadness because I loved him. And I thought he loved me and my son.”