In the early hours of Monday, January 26, 2026, a sense of unease settled over a neighborhood in southeast Austin, Texas. Inside a home on Wagon Bend, a violent encounter left 45-year-old Denise Tijerina with a gunshot wound to the head. First responders arrived at approximately 12:30 a.m. to find Tijerina in her kitchen, critically injured. She was rushed to a local hospital, her life hanging in the balance.
As medical personnel fought to save her, police officers began their
investigation. Witnesses at the scene reported that the suspect was still nearby. A short distance from the home, authorities located and detained 39-year-old Samuel Boardman, who was identified as Tijerina's boyfriend. Investigators determined that Boardman had been inside the residence with Tijerina when she was shot, after which he fled the scene on foot. Boardman, however, declined to provide a statement to the police. He was initially arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
In a turn of events that would later draw public scrutiny, Boardman was released from jail the following day, Tuesday, January 27, after posting a $5,000 bond. The reprieve was short-lived. On Wednesday, January 28, Denise Tijerina succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced deceased. Her death marked the sixth homicide in Austin for the year 2026.
Following Tijerina's death, the charges against Samuel Boardman were upgraded. The Austin Police Department obtained a warrant for his arrest for first-degree murder. On the same day that his girlfriend died, Boardman was re-arrested and taken back into custody. Public records indicated that Boardman had a prior criminal history, including drug-related charges and a 2023 conviction for assault on a family member, for which he received 18 months of probation. The case against him for the murder of Denise Tijerina is pending.
