Delilah Ruiz, 20, was fatally shot outside her Homestead, Florida, home on the evening of February 8, 2025, after a dispute with her ex-boyfriend over money. Investigators say Ruiz had moved $37 from a shared Cash App account to a friend after receiving a notification that the ex, 19-year-old Elijah Clarke, had transferred funds. Clarke arrived at Ruiz’s residence and witnesses say Ruiz and two friends confronted him. Ruiz reportedly used pepper spray in self-defense. Clarke then retrieved a black handgun from a fanny pack, chambered a round, and fired two shots as Ruiz tried to flee; one struck her in the left side of the back. Ruiz was pronounced dead at Memorial Regional Hospital shortly after 8:30 p.m. that night.

After the shooting Clarke fled. Authorities say he was arrested in Houston, Texas, on February 11, 2025; three other people were taken into custody in connection with the case. Eighteen-year-old Christopher Valdes was arrested in Miramar, Florida, and charged as an accessory after the fact. Nineteen-year-old Rafael Torralba and 17-year-old Angelina Valledor were charged with hindering apprehension and prosecution. Ruiz’s family had warned about her relationship with Clarke and voiced grief and anger after her death. Surveillance footage from Ruiz’s home reportedly captured key moments of the encounter.

If anyone witnessed the events outside Ruiz’s home or has information about the movements of the vehicle described as a black Lexus IS350, please come forward.