Four teenagers have been arrested in connection with the April shooting death of a 15-year-old boy.
According to the El Mirage Police Department, on June 26, 2024, a two-month homicide investigation was concluded, leading to the arrest of 18-year-old Joey Hernandez-Silvas, 16-year-old Marcos Martinez, 17-year-old Fernando Avila, and 16-year-old Joshua Ochoa, all from El Mirage.
On April 29, 2024, at approximately 9:00 p.m., El Mirage Police Department (EMPD) officers responded to a report of shots fired near the 13400 block of North Cesar Chavez Drive. A 911 caller reported hearing gunshots and that there was a person on the ground.
EMPD officers arrived and discovered the victim, a 15-year-old male, face down in the front yard of a residence. EMPD officers observed that the victim was without signs of life and had gunshot wounds to the upper torso. EMPD officers administered first aid until the El Mirage Fire Department arrived. The victim was transported to an area hospital, where he was pronounced deceased.
EMPD officers discovered fired shell casings at the scene. EMPD detectives and Neighborhood Enforcement Team officers investigated the homicide.
The investigation revealed Joey Hernandez and his accomplices coordinated and attempted to execute a plan to commit robbery on a person who resides in Surprise, Arizona. Hernandez and his accomplices intended to rob the person they knew wanted to trade a handgun for another handgun. The plan failed when they did not locate the person in Surprise.
Joey Hernadez and his accomplices tracked the person who was willing to trade the handgun to El Mirage, and they learned the handgun had already been traded with the 15-year-old male victim.
Joey Hernandez and his accomplices orchestrated a plan to lure the 15-year-old victim to the area of Cesar Chavez Drive and Soledad Street with the intent to rob the 15-year-old victim of the handgun. During the robbery, the 15-year-old victim turned to run and was shot by Marcos Martinez.
Joey Herandez and his accomplices were arrested and booked on the following:
• ARS 13-1105A2 (1st Degree Murder)
• ARS 13-1902A (Robbery)
• ARS 13-1903A (Aggravated Robbery)
• ARS 13-1903A (Conspiracy of Aggravated Robbery)
“This is a tragedy that resulted in the loss of a young community member’s life. The family affected by this willful act of violence is in our thoughts and prayers and will not soon be forgotten. The effort to bring the violent suspects to justice was a priority for my detectives and me,” stated El Mirage Police Chief Paul Marzocca.
The case was submitted to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office and charges have been filed.
Where are the Parents of these Boys????
1 DEAD 15 Year Old Boy
1 18 Year Old Suspect
1 17 Year Old Suspect
1 16 Year Old Suspect
We need to start holding the Parents accountable. Its obvious that UNRESTRICTED ACCESS TO THE INTERNET BY A MINOR only leads to BAD THINGS. We need to prohibit Minors from having unrestricted access to the Internet to prevent these types of crimes from continuing.
Perhaps the Government should just step out of trying to raise children! This problem started back in the 70’s and is just getting worse.
The parents were the same place that they were when the suspects were in 5th grade, AWOL. And the school districts can’t discipline or teach the kids to be accountable for their own actions for fear of being sued by the same absentee parents.
Now they will be held accountable for their actions as adults; when they should have had those lessons starting in early childhood. Sad