Do you know who murdered Jose Manual Hernandez-Pena?
On the morning of September 21, 2014, Maria Blanca Hernandez was overcome with a terrible sense of foreboding, a feeling she would later describe as a "friction to the heart." She felt it all day, a mother’s intuition that something dreadful was about to happen. That evening, her fear became an unbearable reality when her 16-year-old son, Jose Ual Hernandez-Pena, was killed in a shooting that police have called a random and senseless act of violence. Just two and a half years earlier, Maria had brought Jose to Las Vegas from their native El Salvador, hoping to escape the very kind of street violence that would ultimately take his life in his new home.
Jose, a Hispanic male, was a 10th-grade student at Clark High School. By all accounts, he was a good kid who stayed out of trouble. His mother later said, “I never imagined something would happen to him here... I know it happens, but it's usually with people with problems — and my son did not have problems with anyone.” On that Sunday evening, Jose had just finished dinner with his 17-year-old cousin, an uncle, and two other people. His cousin was driving their Honda sedan and was planning to drop Jose off at a local gym.
Around 7:30 p.m., they were stopped at a red light at the busy intersection of Sahara Avenue and Decatur Boulevard. A dark-colored sedan carrying four men pulled up alongside them. Someone in the other car made what appeared to be a gang gesture and yelled something like, "where are you from?" Jose, sitting in the front passenger seat, was turned away from the other car, talking to his cousin. Without any provocation, at least one person in the dark sedan opened fire into the Honda. Jose was struck multiple times. Both his family and the police have been adamant that he had no involvement with gangs.
In the terrifying confusion after the gunshots, it took the driver a few moments to realize his cousin had been hit and was slumped in the seat. Panicked, the group drove not to a hospital but to a relative’s home in the 5200 block of Stampa Avenue, a place they knew was safe, and called for help. Police later said this was not considered suspicious, just the action of frightened people seeking a safe haven. When first responders arrived, they found Jose lying in the driveway with multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to University Medical Center, but it was too late; he was pronounced dead. His mother and her husband arrived at the house to see their son bleeding on the pavement.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department launched a homicide investigation, but the case quickly grew cold. The shooting had occurred at a major, heavily trafficked intersection surrounded by businesses with surveillance cameras. Despite this, investigators found no useful footage, and no witnesses came forward with information. Police described the suspect vehicle as a dark-colored two- or four-door sedan occupied by four men. They do not believe the motive was road rage or gang-related, emphasizing that no one in the car with Jose had a criminal history. "By all accounts, they did nothing wrong," Metro Homicide Lt. Dan McGrath said. "It's a really sad case."
In the weeks following the murder, police held a press conference pleading with the public for help. "Unbeknownst to him, he became the victim of a heinous crime,” said police Lt. Ray Steiber. “We need the community's help. We believe that somebody saw something.” A faith-based group that partners with the police department offered support to Jose's grieving family and friends, and a local pastor led a prayer group for him.
As of March 2016, the murder of Jose Hernandez-Pena remained unsolved, his killers never identified. The case left a heartbroken mother to grapple with the devastating irony that the country she brought her son to for safety was where his life was so violently cut short. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities continue to ask for the public’s assistance. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Homicide Section at (702) 828-3521 or, to remain anonymous, Crime Stoppers at (702) 385-5555.
