On a summer evening in Midvale, Utah, a senseless argument over a T-shirt tragically cut short the lives of 16-year-old Jose Izazaga and his 15-year-old sister, Abril. The altercation, which took place on July 6, 2016, outside their apartment complex, quickly escalated from a dispute over property into a violent confrontation.
The conflict began when a group of people, including a former friend of Jose's, confronted Abril about a missing T-shirt.
As the argument intensified, one of the individuals, later identified as Mario Cervantes-Angel, became physically aggressive with Abril. Witnessing his sister being assaulted, Jose intervened to protect her, brandishing a knife. This act of defense was met with gunfire. Cervantes-Angel, who was 28 at the time, pulled out a handgun and fired multiple shots at the siblings. Reports from charging documents state that the brother and sister were hugging each other as they were shot and fell to the ground.
Following the shooting, the assailants fled the scene. Abril Izazaga was pronounced dead at the apartment complex, while Jose was rushed to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries a short time later. The day after the tragic incident would have been Jose's 17th birthday.
An investigation swiftly led police to identify Mario Cervantes-Angel as the gunman. He was arrested the day after the shooting at a home in West Valley City. The man who had initially started the argument over the T-shirt also turned himself in to the police. Cervantes-Angel, a native of Mexico, was charged with two counts of aggravated murder. In July 2017, he pleaded guilty to the charges. In exchange for his plea, prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty, and he was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.
