In a senseless act of violence on the morning of April 28, 2017, 18-year-old Manuel Estevan Hernandez-Serrano was shot and killed in an alley in Aurora, Colorado. The young man, a resident of Aurora, was driving with his 18-year-old cousin and a 16-year-old female friend when they encountered Margarito Najera, then a 45-year-old auto mechanic.
The tragic chain of events began with a perceived hand gesture.
Believing Najera had gestured at them as they drove along East 14th Avenue, Hernandez-Serrano and his cousin decided to confront him. Najera accused the teenagers of speeding and 'burning out the tires in the alley.' He then directed them to pull into an alley between Clinton Street and Dallas Street, supposedly to show them tire marks. It was there, in the quiet of the morning, that the confrontation turned deadly.
Witnesses reported that Najera ran up to the passenger side of the Subaru sedan the teens were in and opened fire with a semi-automatic handgun. Hernandez-Serrano was struck in the head and right arm. He was rushed to University Hospital but was pronounced dead approximately 20 minutes later. His cousin was also shot, sustaining injuries to his knee, arm, and stomach, but ultimately survived the brutal attack.
Najera was arrested at the scene moments after the shooting. When questioned by police if he had shot at the teens, he simply replied, 'yeah.' An Arapahoe County jury later convicted Najera of second-degree murder for the death of Manuel Estevan Hernandez-Serrano. He was also found guilty of attempted second-degree murder and first-degree felony assault for the injuries inflicted upon Hernandez-Serrano's cousin.
