What started as a quick burger run on San Antonio's North Side ended with an 80-year-old man beaten, carjacked, and ultimately dead. On Friday, the first of three teenagers tied to the case learned his fate.
At an emotional hearing in Bexar County, 19-year-old Zachariah Aguirre was sentenced to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to his role in the 2023 attack on Larry Brister, according to KSAT. Brister's relatives filled the courtroom, confronting Aguirre and describing how the violence tore through their family.
Aguirre is the first of three defendants to be sentenced in the case. The two remaining teens are still waiting for their turns before a judge.
How the attack unfolded
The assault happened on Feb. 11, 2023, after Brister left his home to pick up hamburgers. He was later found with multiple injuries near the intersection of Walker Ranch and Stonewood Drive on the North Side and rushed to University Hospital. He remained there for months before dying from complications on July 8, 2023, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Courtroom moments
In court, Brister's widow, Sandra, faced Aguirre directly. "This killing was so unnecessary," she told him, adding that she has prayed he will find God and ask for forgiveness, KSAT reports.
Family members also recalled that bystanders, including former Spurs forward Bruce Bowen, tried to save Brister's life at the scene, working to revive him as they waited for help.
Case status
Authorities arrested three teenagers in March 2023 in connection with the attack. At the time, they were 15 and 16 years old and were charged with aggravated robbery, the Express-News reported. Two of those suspects still face trial, while Aguirre has now accepted a plea and received his 25-year sentence.
For the Brister family, the punishment offers some accountability but not anything close to closure. Sandra Brister told the court that the loss still echoes through the home her husband left behind, and relatives say they plan to keep pushing until the remaining defendants are also held to account.
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