In the fall of 2020, the life of 23-year-old Isaiah Rivera Najera, a male resident of Pueblo, Colorado, was tragically cut short. On November 17, 2020, what began as a shopping trip to the Pueblo Mall with a friend descended into a fatal encounter. Inside the mall, a confrontation erupted between Najera and his friend, and another group that included brothers Issaiah and Gary Apodaca, who were allegedly members of a rival gang.
Witnesses reported that the disagreement escalated within a shoe store and continued near the food court and out into the parking lot, where the Apodaca brothers allegedly brandished firearms.
Following the altercation at the mall, Najera and his friend left in their vehicle. The Apodaca brothers pursued them. At the intersection of 29th Street and Hart Road, just a block from the mall, their vehicle pulled up beside Najera's at a red light. It was then that Issaiah Apodaca fired a single shot into Najera's car. The bullet struck Najera, causing his vehicle to mount a nearby curb. When police arrived at the scene around 3:18 p.m., they found him unresponsive. Isaiah Rivera Najera was pronounced dead at the scene from an apparent gunshot wound to the head.
The investigation into the homicide moved swiftly. Police identified the incident as a gang-related shooting. Soon after, authorities arrested 19-year-old Issaiah Apodaca and charged him with murder. His 23-year-old brother, Gary Apodaca, was also taken into custody and charged with complicity to commit first-degree murder, as he was identified as the driver of the vehicle from which the fatal shot was fired. During questioning, Issaiah Apodaca claimed he saw a passenger in Najera's vehicle point a gun at him, which prompted him to fire his own weapon. However, a search of Najera's vehicle and the passenger by law enforcement did not uncover any firearms.
