Fernando Tello was 15 years old when he died on Friday, March 16, 2007, more than a week after he was attacked in El Monte, a city in the San Gabriel Valley east of Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds suffered at 9869 E. Garvey Ave. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described what happened in a short entry. It said that Tello, "a 15-year-old Latino boy, was stabbed in the neck in front of the El Caney store at 9869 E. Garvey Ave. in El Monte on March 8." According to the report, "Detectives said two groups of men or youths were arguing, and a man stabbed the boy." The entry added that "He survived more than a week at a hospital until his death at 4:01 p.m. March 16."
That brief account leaves many questions open.
It does not say what the two groups were arguing about, whether Fernando knew any of the people involved, how many people were present, or whether the man who stabbed him fled on foot or in a car. It does not describe the attacker beyond calling him "a man." No follow-up story could be found, and no statement from sheriff's homicide detectives about suspects or progress in the case appears in the public record.
Beyond his name, his age and the place where he was hurt, almost nothing about Fernando Tello has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found for this story. His name is shared by many people around the world, including public figures in Spain and Argentina, men whose obituaries appear in Florida and Texas, and an adult arrested years later in the High Desert, none of whom has any connection to this death. A 15-year-old would have had classmates, teachers, friends and family who remember him, and some of them may also remember the days after he was stabbed, when he was still alive in the hospital.
El Monte is one of the oldest cities in the San Gabriel Valley, long known by its slogan as the end of the Santa Fe Trail. It is a busy, working-class city of modest homes and apartment buildings, crossed by the San Bernardino Freeway and home to a major regional bus station. Garvey Avenue is one of the main commercial streets running through the area, lined with small markets, restaurants and shops. A storefront on a street like that draws people at all hours, and someone who was there that day may have seen the argument begin.
Hundreds of people are killed in Los Angeles County every year, and a large share of those killings end without an arrest.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Fernando Tello could be found in news archives or public records. More than 18 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was near the El Caney store on Garvey Avenue on March 8, 2007, who saw the argument between the two groups, or who later heard someone talk about stabbing a boy there, may hold information that could help detectives. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a vehicle seen nearby or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
