On a summer evening in 2021, a 17-year-old Hispanic female named Itzel Elizabeth Espinoza left her Phoenix, Arizona home to spend time with friends. That was the last time her family saw her. When she didn't return, her parents grew worried and reported her missing to the police. Two days later, on the morning of July 3, 2021, a devastating discovery was made.
Police, responding to a call about a shooting, found Itzel's body in the passenger seat of a car parked in an alley near 35th Avenue and Southern. She had been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation into her death revealed a tragic story of a dispute turned fatal. According to court documents and police statements, Itzel had gotten into a fight with another young woman, 18-year-old Lindsey Brianna Aguilar. During the altercation, Itzel reportedly tried to get away by locking herself inside a nearby car. It is alleged that Aguilar, after the argument, banged on the car window before asking a companion for a weapon.
Authorities identified two other individuals involved in the incident. One was 19-year-old Jesus Javier Valle Padilla, who was accused of handing a handgun to Aguilar. It is believed Aguilar then fired several shots into the car window, fatally wounding Itzel. The other person was a 16-year-old male who was later arrested and charged with abandonment of a body.
In the weeks following the shooting, Phoenix police made arrests. On July 16, 2021, Jesus Padilla was taken into custody and charged with facilitation of first-degree murder. In July of 2023, Padilla accepted a plea deal and was sentenced to 13 years in prison for reckless manslaughter. The 16-year-old was also arrested and booked into a juvenile detention center. However, the primary suspect, Lindsey Aguilar, remains at large. Investigators believe she may have fled to Mexico.
