Another Fort Bliss soldier has been arrested in connection with the February shooting death of 23-year-old U.S. Army Pvt. Edward DaQuan Smith during a late-night house party in Far East El Paso. The arrest comes months after authorities first charged a fellow service member with murder in the same case.
Spc. Howard Chevard Dyron Brock, 21, was taken into custody Monday with the assistance of Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID). According to El Paso police, Brock—who serves as a unit supply specialist with the 1st Armored Division—was booked into the El Paso County Jail on a murder charge and is being held on a $1 million bond.
Brock is now the second soldier to be charged in what’s being called the “Setting Sun murder,” named for the street where the fatal shooting occurred on February 28, 2025. The first suspect, Spc. Eric Lamarr Mathis, 24, was arrested in March. Mathis remains in custody on a $1.5 million bond and is scheduled for trial in June 2026.
All three soldiers—Smith, Mathis, and Brock—were stationed at Fort Bliss at the time of the shooting. Smith and Brock were assigned to the 1st Armored Division, while Mathis served with the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command.
A Party Turned Deadly
The deadly confrontation unfolded outside a short-term rental home during a house party in the early morning hours of Feb. 28. Witnesses told investigators that Mathis, accompanied by a man known only as “Slimy,” immediately confronted Smith at gunpoint as he stepped out of his car. Mathis’s six-year-old stepson was reportedly standing beside him during the incident.
Multiple eyewitnesses said Smith appeared confused by the confrontation, and what followed was a chaotic shootout that ended with Smith fatally wounded on the sidewalk.
Surveillance video captured the sound of gunfire echoing through the neighborhood, waking nearby residents who reported hearing multiple shots.
According to the autopsy report, Smith suffered eight gunshot wounds—two to the head, five to the torso, and one to the left thigh.
Child Witness Identifies “Daddy”
One of the most disturbing details to emerge came from the six-year-old boy present during the shooting. Interviewed at the El Paso Advocacy Center for Children, the child told investigators that “Daddy shot the guy,” identifying Mathis as the shooter and adding that he used “a big gun.”
Court documents reveal that after the initial exchange of gunfire, one of the shooters—believed to be “Slimy”—stood over Smith and fired additional rounds into his body while he was already down.
Mathis was treated for a gunshot wound to his arm shortly after the incident. When questioned at El Paso Police Headquarters, he denied being involved in the shooting.
Defense Claims Self-Defense
At an April bond hearing, Mathis’s defense attorney, Brian Livingston, claimed his client was acting in self-defense while protecting the six-year-old boy. According to Livingston, Smith was the aggressor in the exchange.
But Assistant District Attorney Rebecca Tarango rejected the claim, saying witnesses told police that Smith was confronted and attacked by two armed men before he even had a chance to defend himself.
The prosecutor said it appeared that Smith did return fire, likely striking Mathis in the arm, but emphasized that the attackers initiated the deadly confrontation.
Who Is “Slimy”?
Authorities have not confirmed whether Spc. Brock is the man known as “Slimy,” despite his recent arrest. Police have yet to publicly identify “Slimy” by name, and the El Paso Police Department has not responded to inquiries about whether they are seeking additional suspects.
As of now, both Mathis and Brock face murder charges in a case that has shocked Fort Bliss and raised serious questions about military discipline and soldier conduct off-post.
Neighbors described the shooting as an anomaly in an otherwise quiet residential area. One resident, Andres Marquez, recalled seeing police attempting CPR on Smith at the scene: “It’s kind of scary. There’s never been anything like this here.”
The investigation remains ongoing.
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