On January 14, 2023, 14-year-old Evan Wessling and his father, 38-year-old Preston Wessling, were shot and killed outside their home on Airport Road in Tow, Texas. Llano County deputies responded after a 911 call reporting gunshots at about 4:49 a.m.; both father and son were found dead in the driveway of multiple gunshot wounds. An earlier report of gunfire in the same area around 1:07 a.m. was logged that night, but any connection to the later killings has not been made public.

The Llano County Sheriff’s Office, the Texas Rangers and the Llano County District Attorney’s Office investigated. Two 19-year-olds, Kyler Nathaniel Allen and Jordan Eric Ostrander, were arrested on January 16, 2023, charged with capital murder and held without bail. Officials say the suspects were acquainted with the victims; no motive or further relationship details have been released.

Evan was a freshman at Burnet High School and remembered by classmates and teachers as friendly and well liked. The family set up a GoFundMe to help with funeral expenses. Did anyone in Tow or Burnet have information about that night or about Evan and his family’s connections?