Yessenia Novoa-Poveda, a 48-year-old resident of Waukegan, Illinois, was fatally shot on September 17, 2024. The incident occurred around 1:10 a.m. in the area of the intersection of Melrose Avenue and Elmwood Avenue in Waukegan. Police and fire departments responded to a report of a shooting and found Novoa-Poveda shot inside a black Toyota Corolla. She was transported to Vista Medical Center East, where she was pronounced dead in the emergency room despite medical care.
The autopsy, conducted by the Lake County Coroner’s Office, revealed that Novoa-Poveda died from a gunshot wound to the back. At the time of the shooting, two other people were in the car with her, but they were uninjured. The three had been carpooling home together from work.
The investigation led by the Waukegan Police Department identified the suspects and their vehicle, a 2009 Ford Crown Victoria registered to Torsheill Hibbler. Video surveillance showed that a passenger, later identified as Johnathan D. White, exited the Ford and opened fire on the Toyota Corolla. Two other occupants of the Ford, Hibbler and her 17-year-old son Tyrone Hoy, also began firing on the Toyota from inside their vehicle. The suspects were seeking retaliation for a previous incident in August where Hoy was shot, mistakenly identifying Novoa-Poveda's car as the one involved in that shooting.
Arrest warrants were issued for the three suspects: Johnathan D. White, 20, of Zion; Torsheill Hibbler, 37, of Round Lake Beach; and Tyrone Hoy, 17, of Round Lake Beach. White was arrested on October 9 in Chicago, while Hibbler and her son surrendered to police on October 28 in Gurnee. In addition to the murder charges, Hibbler was also charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver and unlawful possession of a controlled substance. A search of the suspects' vehicle and residence yielded a semi-automatic handgun and over 714 grams of substances that field-tested positive for cocaine.
Novoa-Poveda had recently migrated to Waukegan with the hope of a better future for her 7-year-old son, Caleb Esau Perez Novoa. She is survived by her husband, Abel Perez Parista, and her family in Nicaragua. Her visitation was held on September 22, 2024, at The Memorial Chapel of Waukegan, and she was laid to rest in her hometown of Masaes, Nicaragua.
