In the spring of 2017, just weeks before he was set to be married, 19-year-old Miguel Angel Ayala was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee. On the afternoon of Saturday, May 13, 2017, Ayala was a passenger in a pickup truck with three other young men. They were reportedly on their way to pick up a grill for a party.
As they were driving near Isabelle Street, a single gunshot was fired from the backseat of the truck.
Ayala was struck, and the driver, in a state of panic, rushed him to Methodist North Hospital. Despite his friend's efforts to save him by carrying him into the emergency room, Ayala succumbed to his injuries just minutes later.
In the immediate aftermath, the individual who fired the gun reportedly fled the scene on foot, taking the weapon with him. This action prompted Ayala's family to question the nature of the shooting, suggesting that if it were truly an accident, the shooter would not have run.
A few days later, Memphis police arrested 19-year-old Hector Rostro in connection with the shooting. Rostro was subsequently charged with reckless homicide and tampering with or fabricating evidence. According to police, Rostro claimed that he was examining his gun, trying to figure out what was wrong with it when it accidentally discharged, striking and killing Ayala. He also admitted to investigators that he had thrown the gun into a wooded area after the incident.
