In the early morning hours of October 14, 2021, Andres Valenzuela, a 62-year-old taxi driver from New Rochelle, New York, was fatally shot as he was parking his cab after finishing his shift. A patrolling New Rochelle police officer discovered Valenzuela on the ground in the parking lot of Juliano's Caterers on Main Street with two gunshot wounds. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Valenzuela, who was born in Mexico, had been a driver for Express City Taxi for a decade, often working long hours to support his family.
The investigation into the death of Andres Valenzuela quickly led law enforcement to a suspect, Percell Ross Blakely, a 54-year-old man from Virginia with prior felony convictions. A multi-agency effort involving the New Rochelle Police Department, the FBI's Westchester Safe Streets Task Force, and other law enforcement agencies tracked Blakely to a residential building in Brooklyn. On October 17, 2021, just three days after the murder, when detectives attempted to apprehend him, a shootout ensued. Blakely fired at the officers before eventually surrendering. The. 22 caliber firearm recovered at the scene was believed to be the same weapon used to kill Valenzuela.
Percell Ross Blakely was charged with murder in the first degree. In addition to the murder charge, he faced federal charges related to the shootout with police. Blakely was also a wanted fugitive in connection with an attempted murder in Connecticut and for sex trafficking in Virginia. On February 15, 2024, Blakely pleaded guilty to the murder of Andres Valenzuela. Subsequently, in April 2024, he was sentenced to 20 years to life in state prison. During the sentencing, Valenzuela's daughter delivered a heartfelt statement, expressing the profound loss her family endured.
