Holden Heath

Just a few days after Christmas in 2019, a violent home invasion in Bowling Green, Kentucky, ended the life of Holden Heath. The 19-year-old White male was at his apartment on Torridge Avenue on the night of Friday, December 27, when the deadly encounter occurred. Holden’s girlfriend and child were also in the apartment at the time.

That evening, just after 8 p.m., the Bowling Green Police Department received a call about a disturbance at the apartment. While officers were on their way, a second report came in that shots had been fired. Police arrived to find Holden Heath inside Apartment 123 with a gunshot wound to his chest. He was rushed to a local hospital, but he died from his injuries. Before he passed away, Holden was able to tell investigators that the person who shot him was named “Nate.”

Detectives learned that the shooting happened during a robbery. The suspect had received information on social media that there might be money or marijuana in Holden’s apartment and went there armed with a handgun. After knocking, he forced his way inside, leading to a standoff and a physical confrontation that ended with Holden being shot. The investigation quickly revealed that Holden and his attacker, 20-year-old Nathanael Mieses-Nevarez, were familiar with each other. Police located Mieses-Nevarez later that same night at his grandmother’s apartment on Jackson Street. He was arrested, initially on a parole warrant, and taken in for questioning.

Mieses-Nevarez was charged with murder and first-degree burglary. The list of charges was later expanded to include first-degree robbery, two counts of first-degree wanton endangerment for the presence of Holden's girlfriend and child, tampering with physical evidence for disposing of the gun, and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon. In November 2021, Mieses-Nevarez, then 21, accepted a plea deal to avoid a potential life sentence at trial. He pleaded guilty to all charges. In January 2022, Nathanael Mieses-Nevarez was sentenced to 50 years in prison.