An 18-year-old suspect has been nabbed for the alleged murder of a 19-year-old man who was reported missing and later found dead in April last year. The alleged shooter, identified as Jonathan Hernandez, is facing capital murder charges and could be staring down the barrel of a lengthy prison sentence if convicted.
According to a news release from the City of Houston, the victim, Luis Deleon, was last seen alive at a spot on Navigation Boulevard before his remains were discovered a few weeks later near some railroad tracks, his body concealed beneath wood pallets. An investigation revealed multiple gunshot wounds as the cause of Deleon's demise, according to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.
Detectives pinned the blame on Hernandez after piecing together the teen's final hours. "Investigators learned Hernandez fatally shot Deleon during a robbery" stated the HPD Homicide Division Sergeant M. Cass and Detective J. Wallschlaeger, as they painted the grim picture of Deleon's last moments.
Hernandez's run from the law came to an end in Mexico on February 15, thanks to a collaboration between the US Marshals Office’s Fugitive Task Force and Mexican authorities. The suspect was promptly extradited to Texas where he was thrown behind bars at the Harris County Jail.
