In the winter of 2022, a dispute on the streets of Phoenix would tragically cut short the life of Joshua Hernandez Jr., a 31-year-old Hispanic male. On the evening of January 31st, what began as a road rage incident escalated into a fatal encounter near the intersection of 16th and Roosevelt Streets. Following the initial confrontation between vehicles, both cars pulled into a parking lot.
It was there that the conflict took a deadly turn.
After the vehicles stopped, a passenger from the other car, identified as 20-year-old Sebastian Serrano, allegedly exited his vehicle. In a sudden and violent act, Serrano is reported to have fired nine shots at Hernandez. A friend who was with Joshua at the time scrambled to get him help, rushing him to a nearby hospital. Despite these efforts, Joshua Hernandez Jr. succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead.
The investigation into the shooting led Phoenix police to Sebastian Serrano, who was subsequently arrested and faced a charge of first-degree murder. During questioning, Serrano initially claimed that he believed Hernandez was reaching for a weapon, which prompted him to shoot. However, he later amended his statement, admitting that he had only seen Hernandez turn his body.
Serrano was booked into the Maricopa County Jail, with his bail set at $1.5 million. The community was left to mourn the loss of Joshua Hernandez Jr., with many gathering to light candles in his memory, a somber testament to a life lost to a senseless act of violence on the city's streets.
