Sports Anchor Accused of Murdering Relative: Details on Johnathan Solarte's Arrest

By Brian Jones

Johnathan Solarte, a former sports anchor for Univision, has been arrested on suspicion of murder for allegedly shooting and killing a relative during a fight in Texas, according to the New York Post. Solarte, 37, allegedly shot 35-year-old Ricardo Escobar Cardona at a home in Corpus Christi on July 3. The former sports anchor flagged down responding officers when they pulled the scene. 

"I called out to Jonathan and he stated that I needed to go inside to help someone. I asked him who the shooter was and he stated he was the shooter," a responding officer stated, per KRIS 6 News. When entering the home, police found a woman crying over Cardona who was shot on the left side of his chest. Cardona was taken to a local hospital, where he died of his injuries. 

Solarte, who was arrested on the scene, was released from Nueces County Jail on a $300,000 bond. He told police he was  "trying to defend himself and that he was struggling with Ricardo at the time he was shot." The report also says, "Jonathan also stated that Ricardo barged into his home and began to threaten him."

Related:

A witness named Martha Sanchez said Cardona and Solarte were talking before they began arguing. And when she tried to break up the fight, Sanchez was allegedly knocked to the ground before heating a gunshot wound. "She stated that she did not see what exactly happened when the gun went off," the report says. 

According to his Linkedin profile, Solarte was the lead sports anchor for Univision 41 in San Antonio Texas for six years. And before working for Univision, Solarte spent with NBC Telemundo serving as a sports anchor, director, producer and reporter. This is not the first time Solarte got into some legal trouble. In 2017, Solarte was arrested after fleeing from a traffic stop, but the charges were dropped. 

Trending Now: