Victor Fernando Nava was a 19-year-old man who loved music and dreamed of moving back to his birth state of California. Born on June 23, 2007, Victor was remembered by his mother, Mary Lou Nava, as someone who enjoyed listening to both Spanish music and funk. She said he often talked about returning to California, calling it a beautiful state with beautiful weather.
He was a son, a brother, a grandson, and a cousin, surrounded by a large and loving family, including his parents, Mary Lou Nava-Alba and Victor Fernando Nava, and his five siblings. His family described him as someone who was taken from them far too soon.
On the night of Saturday, October 17, 2026, Victor’s day started like any other. His mother made him breakfast and lunch before he left the house, not knowing it would be the last time she would see him alive. Victor, his brother, and a friend were invited to a birthday celebration that evening. The night ended in tragedy on a residential street in southeast Decatur, Alabama. At around 11:45 p.m., the Decatur Police Department received calls reporting gunshots and a vehicle fire at a home located at 110 Ridgewood Court SE. When officers arrived at the scene, they discovered a white SUV engulfed in flames in the driveway. In the roadway next to the residence, they found Victor Nava, who had been shot multiple times. Morgan County Coroner Jeff Chunn pronounced him dead at the scene.
Inside the home, police found two men, Casper Zane Salcido and Ruben Montelongo. Montelongo had a gunshot wound to his shoulder and was transported to a medical facility for treatment. According to a sworn affidavit from a Decatur Police detective, both Salcido and Montelongo were read their Miranda rights and agreed to give statements. In their statements, both men admitted to detectives that they had shot at the vehicle and its driver, Victor Nava. Police have described the shooting as an isolated incident. Victor’s sister suggested the violence may have erupted after a party went wrong. His mother, Mary Lou, questioned why a fight escalated to gunfire. “My son wasn’t carrying any weapons. He never did,” she said.
The investigation is being handled by the Decatur Police Department. Based on the investigation and the statements provided, detectives arrested 22-year-old Casper Zane Salcido on Tuesday, October 20, 2026. He was charged with one count of murder for intentionally causing Victor’s death by shooting him multiple times with a handgun. Salcido was booked into the Morgan County Jail and is being held without bond per Alabama law. Court records did not immediately indicate if Ruben Montelongo would face charges related to the shooting.
In the days following her son’s death, Mary Lou Nava received a phone call early Sunday morning delivering the devastating news. “They had to tell me right then. Through the phone. They told me my son was already dead,” she recalled. The family has been left struggling to comprehend their loss. “The way he died he didn’t deserve to die like that,” his mother said, expressing her profound grief and her desire for accountability. “I want answers and I want somebody behind bars.”
Family and friends gathered to remember Victor’s life. A visitation was held on Friday, October 23, 2026, at Roselawn Funeral Home in Decatur, followed by a funeral Mass and burial at Roselawn Cemetery the next day. The case against Casper Zane Salcido is proceeding through the Morgan County court system. As of October 2026, the investigation was ongoing. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the Decatur Police Department at 256-341-4660.
