1 00:00:01,435 --> 00:00:02,871 [bright music] 2 00:00:02,871 --> 00:00:05,135 [Narrator] A loving father of two. 3 00:00:05,135 --> 00:00:08,094 [Gladys speaking in Spanish] 4 00:00:08,094 --> 00:00:09,704 Was extremely hard-working. 5 00:00:09,704 --> 00:00:11,532 Very likable, very personable. 6 00:00:13,186 --> 00:00:15,667 [Narrator] Is ruthlessly killed outside his home. 7 00:00:15,667 --> 00:00:19,236 There was numerous gunshot wounds to his upper torso. 8 00:00:19,236 --> 00:00:22,065 Whoever shot the victim was extremely angry 9 00:00:22,065 --> 00:00:23,762 and was sending a message. 10 00:00:23,762 --> 00:00:26,330 [Narrator] Detectives hunt a cold-blooded murderer. 11 00:00:26,330 --> 00:00:29,246 We identified the weapon as an AK-47. 12 00:00:29,246 --> 00:00:31,552 He received a text message that said, 13 00:00:31,552 --> 00:00:33,554 "Nobody messes with me." [tense music] 14 00:00:33,554 --> 00:00:35,382 People were fearing for their lives 15 00:00:35,382 --> 00:00:38,081 because the killer was still out there. 16 00:00:38,081 --> 00:00:39,865 The question starts to creep in of, 17 00:00:39,865 --> 00:00:42,215 is this one that may never be solved? 18 00:00:43,782 --> 00:00:47,220 [Narrator] Then, one phone call changes everything. 19 00:00:48,439 --> 00:00:50,919 He said that he was in fear for his life, 20 00:00:50,919 --> 00:00:52,660 for what he was gonna tell us. 21 00:00:52,660 --> 00:00:55,924 We thought, wow, this is the first break that we've had. 22 00:00:55,924 --> 00:00:57,709 [tense music] 23 00:00:57,709 --> 00:01:00,581 [Narrator] Exposing a killer no one saw coming. 24 00:01:00,581 --> 00:01:01,582 It hit you in the gut. 25 00:01:01,582 --> 00:01:03,149 It was somebody that you 26 00:01:03,149 --> 00:01:04,237 just never really would've expected. 27 00:01:04,237 --> 00:01:08,763 [Gladys speaking in Spanish] 28 00:01:08,763 --> 00:01:11,505 [dramatic music] 29 00:01:16,989 --> 00:01:18,599 [bright music] 30 00:01:18,599 --> 00:01:20,949 [Narrator] Mammoth Lakes, California. A pristine 31 00:01:20,949 --> 00:01:24,127 ski town in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. 32 00:01:24,127 --> 00:01:26,607 People come out here to vacation. 33 00:01:26,607 --> 00:01:29,610 They come out here to go skiing, snowboarding. 34 00:01:29,610 --> 00:01:33,788 And in the summer months it's hiking, bicycling, fishing. 35 00:01:33,788 --> 00:01:34,963 It's beautiful. 36 00:01:34,963 --> 00:01:36,226 The weather's always sunny. 37 00:01:36,226 --> 00:01:38,358 There's always an outdoor aspect 38 00:01:38,358 --> 00:01:41,753 that is just the most beautiful thing you've ever seen. 39 00:01:41,753 --> 00:01:45,148 [Narrator] One early fall morning in 2016 40 00:01:45,148 --> 00:01:49,064 turns into a nightmare for the town of Mammoth. 41 00:01:49,064 --> 00:01:50,631 Mammoth Lakes Police department received 42 00:01:50,631 --> 00:01:54,244 a 911 call at approximately 1:50 in the morning, 43 00:01:54,244 --> 00:01:57,812 reporting just hearing a series of rapid gunfire 44 00:01:57,812 --> 00:02:01,294 and that a neighbor across the street had been shot. 45 00:02:01,294 --> 00:02:04,732 [Narrator] Police and first responders race to the scene. 46 00:02:04,732 --> 00:02:08,214 Patrol officers found the victim lying in the driveway. 47 00:02:08,214 --> 00:02:10,477 And he was lying face down in his own blood. 48 00:02:10,477 --> 00:02:11,957 [tense music] 49 00:02:11,957 --> 00:02:14,655 You had an individual who'd been shot multiple times. 50 00:02:14,655 --> 00:02:18,659 And the victim's wife standing there and she's hysterical. 51 00:02:34,284 --> 00:02:35,415 [Narrator] Paramedics arrive 52 00:02:35,415 --> 00:02:37,548 and try to resuscitate the victim. 53 00:02:48,907 --> 00:02:52,693 Police learn the victim is 35-year-old Omar Hernandez 54 00:02:52,693 --> 00:02:55,348 and a homicide investigation is launched. 55 00:02:56,306 --> 00:02:58,046 When I arrived on scene, 56 00:02:58,046 --> 00:02:59,700 I've never seen anything like that. 57 00:02:59,700 --> 00:03:04,052 Omar had approximately 15 gunshot wounds to his body. 58 00:03:04,052 --> 00:03:05,315 [tense music] 59 00:03:05,315 --> 00:03:07,882 There were bullet impact marks all over. 60 00:03:07,882 --> 00:03:11,756 In total, there was 30 shell casings that were found. 61 00:03:11,756 --> 00:03:14,889 The victim was laying alongside his vehicle. 62 00:03:14,889 --> 00:03:19,067 There was numerous gunshot wounds to his upper torso. 63 00:03:19,067 --> 00:03:21,069 His vehicle was still running, 64 00:03:21,069 --> 00:03:22,723 coffee cup still laying there. 65 00:03:22,723 --> 00:03:26,074 All indications that he was getting ready to go somewhere. 66 00:03:26,074 --> 00:03:27,728 [tense music] 67 00:03:27,728 --> 00:03:29,817 What was also noticed was there were divots 68 00:03:29,817 --> 00:03:33,386 that were in the asphalt and in the driveway. 69 00:03:33,386 --> 00:03:35,301 We definitely got the feeling that, 70 00:03:35,301 --> 00:03:36,998 as the victim laid there, 71 00:03:36,998 --> 00:03:38,696 he was continuously being shot. 72 00:03:38,696 --> 00:03:40,306 [tense music] 73 00:03:40,306 --> 00:03:43,744 I felt like it was extremely personal. 74 00:03:43,744 --> 00:03:46,921 Whoever shot the victim was extremely angry 75 00:03:46,921 --> 00:03:48,619 and was sending a message. 76 00:03:48,619 --> 00:03:50,490 [tense music] 77 00:03:50,490 --> 00:03:53,493 [Narrator] The shell casings provide another surprising, 78 00:03:53,493 --> 00:03:55,495 but valuable clue. [tense music] 79 00:03:55,495 --> 00:03:57,584 The caliber of the bullet that was used, 80 00:03:57,584 --> 00:04:00,500 that only comes from a high-powered assault rifle. 81 00:04:00,500 --> 00:04:02,763 It was a 7.6 millimeter round, 82 00:04:02,763 --> 00:04:06,463 so we believed it had to be AK-47. 83 00:04:06,463 --> 00:04:10,118 To have a weapon of that sort here in Mammoth, 84 00:04:10,118 --> 00:04:11,511 I thought was extremely unusual 85 00:04:11,511 --> 00:04:12,991 because those are assault weapons. 86 00:04:12,991 --> 00:04:15,298 Those are not hunting rifles. 87 00:04:15,298 --> 00:04:17,604 We thought it was potentially gang related, 88 00:04:17,604 --> 00:04:19,780 possibly some sort of hit. 89 00:04:19,780 --> 00:04:22,566 That somebody definitely wanted to get the job done. 90 00:04:24,132 --> 00:04:26,570 [Narrator] Could this have been a planned execution? 91 00:04:26,570 --> 00:04:30,443 Detectives try to speak with Omar's wife, Gladys. 92 00:04:30,443 --> 00:04:34,317 Gladys was hysterical, extremely upset, unable to talk. 93 00:04:34,317 --> 00:04:35,666 And she was screaming. 94 00:04:47,373 --> 00:04:49,070 [Narrator] Born in 1980, [bright music] 95 00:04:49,070 --> 00:04:53,292 Omar was raised by a single mother in Guadalajara, Mexico. 96 00:04:53,292 --> 00:04:55,860 But knew his destiny lay elsewhere. 97 00:05:10,353 --> 00:05:12,006 When Omar was 18 years old, [bright music] 98 00:05:12,006 --> 00:05:14,531 he headed to Mammoth on the advice of a friend. 99 00:05:14,531 --> 00:05:16,184 And for eight years, 100 00:05:16,184 --> 00:05:18,186 had been successfully working his way up 101 00:05:18,186 --> 00:05:19,797 at the same company. 102 00:05:19,797 --> 00:05:21,886 Omar had a good job here in Mammoth. 103 00:05:21,886 --> 00:05:25,019 He was a supervisor at the Vons grocery store, 104 00:05:25,019 --> 00:05:28,501 which is the main grocery store in Mammoth Lakes. 105 00:05:28,501 --> 00:05:30,198 He was extremely hard working, 106 00:05:30,198 --> 00:05:32,375 very likable, very personable. 107 00:05:33,898 --> 00:05:37,597 At work, Omar was known to be a kind and caring, 108 00:05:37,597 --> 00:05:41,384 almost big brother figure to a lot of the employees 109 00:05:41,384 --> 00:05:42,689 that he supervised. [bright music] 110 00:05:42,689 --> 00:05:44,517 He took them under his wing 111 00:05:44,517 --> 00:05:47,520 and really tried to help them feel like they belonged. 112 00:05:49,609 --> 00:05:53,526 [Narrator] In 2006, Omar met Gladys Gastelum. 113 00:05:53,526 --> 00:05:55,746 And romance quickly blossomed. 114 00:06:05,408 --> 00:06:07,453 Omar and Gladys started a family, 115 00:06:07,453 --> 00:06:10,543 welcoming the arrival of two sons. 116 00:06:20,466 --> 00:06:22,642 The young family had a bright future, 117 00:06:22,642 --> 00:06:24,470 starting with an event planned [tense music] 118 00:06:24,470 --> 00:06:27,212 for just days after Omar's murder. 119 00:06:37,614 --> 00:06:39,529 Instead of a celebration, [tense music] 120 00:06:39,529 --> 00:06:43,533 Omar's loved ones must now organize a funeral. 121 00:06:43,533 --> 00:06:46,927 Looking for answers, detectives questioned Gladys 122 00:06:46,927 --> 00:06:49,539 about the hours leading up to the shooting. 123 00:06:49,539 --> 00:06:51,497 She had gone to visit a family member 124 00:06:51,497 --> 00:06:53,194 and Omar stayed home. 125 00:06:53,194 --> 00:06:54,500 And she came home right 126 00:06:54,500 --> 00:06:56,284 around 10:00 or 10:30 p.m. that night 127 00:06:56,284 --> 00:06:57,938 and Omar was sleeping. [tense music] 128 00:06:57,938 --> 00:06:59,505 He was trying to get a good night's sleep 129 00:06:59,505 --> 00:07:01,507 before the night shift. 130 00:07:01,507 --> 00:07:03,291 According to Gladys, 131 00:07:03,291 --> 00:07:05,468 at approximately 1:30 in the morning, 132 00:07:05,468 --> 00:07:08,471 Omar had gotten up, made himself some coffee, 133 00:07:08,471 --> 00:07:11,604 and went outside to start the car to warm it up. 134 00:07:17,610 --> 00:07:21,484 And then shortly after he exited the back door 135 00:07:21,484 --> 00:07:24,704 to go to work, she heard the loud gunfire 136 00:07:24,704 --> 00:07:26,489 that made her jump up. 137 00:07:37,543 --> 00:07:40,590 So she got dressed really quick, ran outside. 138 00:07:40,590 --> 00:07:43,810 And that's when she saw Omar lying face down 139 00:07:43,810 --> 00:07:45,159 in the driveway. 140 00:07:45,159 --> 00:07:47,727 [tense music] 141 00:08:01,393 --> 00:08:02,612 [Narrator] When police ask 142 00:08:02,612 --> 00:08:04,701 if anyone held a grudge against Omar, 143 00:08:04,701 --> 00:08:07,573 Gladys's response is immediate. 144 00:08:08,705 --> 00:08:10,750 The name of Saul Morales came up. 145 00:08:10,750 --> 00:08:14,537 Saul Morales had a problem with Omar 146 00:08:14,537 --> 00:08:17,670 because Saul had always accused Omar 147 00:08:17,670 --> 00:08:19,585 of having an extramarital affair 148 00:08:19,585 --> 00:08:21,195 with his wife, Rosalinda, 149 00:08:21,195 --> 00:08:25,156 who was also a employee at the Vons supermarket. 150 00:08:25,156 --> 00:08:27,637 About a year or so before the murder occurred, 151 00:08:27,637 --> 00:08:31,205 investigators learned that Saul had actually gone 152 00:08:31,205 --> 00:08:33,773 to Omar and Gladys's home, 153 00:08:33,773 --> 00:08:35,819 trying to confront Omar 154 00:08:35,819 --> 00:08:38,256 over whether these affair rumors were true. 155 00:08:38,256 --> 00:08:39,649 [tense music] 156 00:08:39,649 --> 00:08:42,347 There were disputes between Omar and Saul. 157 00:08:42,347 --> 00:08:44,654 [tense music] 158 00:08:44,654 --> 00:08:46,481 [Narrator] Gladys tells investigators 159 00:08:46,481 --> 00:08:49,572 that Saul's behavior had been disturbing. 160 00:08:50,442 --> 00:08:52,183 Saul confronted her. 161 00:08:52,183 --> 00:08:55,229 Told her that my wife is having an affair with your husband. 162 00:08:55,229 --> 00:08:56,666 [tense music] 163 00:08:56,666 --> 00:08:57,754 She noticed that he had been driving 164 00:08:57,754 --> 00:09:00,757 by the house on a regular basis. 165 00:09:00,757 --> 00:09:02,672 [Narrator] Gladys says she had seen Saul 166 00:09:02,672 --> 00:09:04,630 drive by her house as recently 167 00:09:04,630 --> 00:09:07,981 as just three days before Omar was killed. 168 00:09:08,765 --> 00:09:10,593 Things became so bad, 169 00:09:10,593 --> 00:09:12,203 Gladys tells police 170 00:09:12,203 --> 00:09:15,423 that Omar filed a restraining order against Saul. 171 00:09:15,423 --> 00:09:17,643 That was an attempt for Omar to get Saul 172 00:09:17,643 --> 00:09:19,427 to stop coming to his house, 173 00:09:19,427 --> 00:09:22,039 stop contacting his wife. [tense music] 174 00:09:22,039 --> 00:09:24,389 [Narrator] Could Saul's jealous rage 175 00:09:24,389 --> 00:09:26,173 have driven him to murder? 176 00:09:26,173 --> 00:09:30,090 Gladys indicated that she was afraid of Saul. 177 00:09:30,090 --> 00:09:33,267 And she thought maybe he was so upset 178 00:09:33,267 --> 00:09:35,008 over this alleged affair 179 00:09:36,488 --> 00:09:39,099 that he possibly could have killed Omar. 180 00:09:39,099 --> 00:09:43,277 And so Saul became a person of interest pretty quickly. 181 00:09:43,277 --> 00:09:48,065 At that moment, we felt like, okay, maybe this is the guy. 182 00:09:48,065 --> 00:09:49,632 [tense music] 183 00:09:49,632 --> 00:09:51,111 [Narrator] Coming up. 184 00:09:51,111 --> 00:09:54,071 Investigators uncover a menacing grudge. 185 00:09:54,071 --> 00:09:55,638 He hated Omar. 186 00:09:55,638 --> 00:09:57,857 He was there to teach Omar a lesson. 187 00:09:57,857 --> 00:10:00,773 That is motive to murder somebody. 188 00:10:00,773 --> 00:10:02,775 [Narrator] And shocking clues. 189 00:10:02,775 --> 00:10:06,300 The sedan pulled over near where the crime scene occurred. 190 00:10:06,300 --> 00:10:07,693 It was the same vehicle 191 00:10:07,693 --> 00:10:09,869 that we'd seen in the video surveillance. 192 00:10:09,869 --> 00:10:13,438 The shell casings recovered were fired from the same gun. 193 00:10:14,744 --> 00:10:16,659 [Narrator] Before a surprise confession 194 00:10:16,659 --> 00:10:18,878 reveals a cold-blooded killer. 195 00:10:18,878 --> 00:10:21,751 He described how he just continued to shoot. 196 00:10:27,757 --> 00:10:28,845 That was alarming. 197 00:10:28,845 --> 00:10:30,673 I knew right then it was huge. 198 00:10:30,673 --> 00:10:33,197 [tense music] 199 00:10:38,376 --> 00:10:41,161 [Narrator] Hours after 35-year-old father of two, 200 00:10:41,161 --> 00:10:44,948 Omar Hernandez, was gunned down in his own driveway, 201 00:10:44,948 --> 00:10:47,559 his wife Gladys has pointed police 202 00:10:47,559 --> 00:10:49,692 towards a possible killer. 203 00:10:49,692 --> 00:10:52,477 Saul Morales was the first suspect in this case 204 00:10:52,477 --> 00:10:53,957 because his wife, Rosalinda, 205 00:10:53,957 --> 00:10:57,830 had reportedly been having an affair with Omar. 206 00:10:57,830 --> 00:11:02,226 We found out that Saul confronted Omar about the affair. 207 00:11:03,967 --> 00:11:07,274 Saul told Omar to leave his wife alone. 208 00:11:07,274 --> 00:11:10,713 Omar was upset that Saul had come over to his house 209 00:11:10,713 --> 00:11:12,062 while his kids were home. [tense music] 210 00:11:13,411 --> 00:11:14,760 There was a fight that broke out 211 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:16,806 between him and police were called. 212 00:11:16,806 --> 00:11:18,416 [Narrator] Officers arrived on scene 213 00:11:18,416 --> 00:11:19,678 and they were separated. 214 00:11:19,678 --> 00:11:20,940 No charges were filed, 215 00:11:20,940 --> 00:11:23,726 but there still was a documented incident. 216 00:11:23,726 --> 00:11:25,553 Gladys did not believe 217 00:11:25,553 --> 00:11:28,905 that Omar really did have an affair with Rosalinda. 218 00:11:28,905 --> 00:11:32,038 But the important thing was if Saul believed it to be true, 219 00:11:32,038 --> 00:11:34,780 then that is motive to murder somebody. 220 00:11:34,780 --> 00:11:36,739 [tense music] 221 00:11:36,739 --> 00:11:37,957 [Narrator] Needing more information 222 00:11:37,957 --> 00:11:39,872 about the alleged affair 223 00:11:39,872 --> 00:11:42,962 investigators head to Omar's workplace. 224 00:11:44,442 --> 00:11:46,749 The coworkers described Omar as a nice guy 225 00:11:46,749 --> 00:11:48,402 that got along with everybody. 226 00:11:48,402 --> 00:11:51,841 The manager described Omar as a very hard working person, 227 00:11:51,841 --> 00:11:53,407 dedicated to the job. 228 00:11:53,407 --> 00:11:56,019 Was that employee that worked over and beyond 229 00:11:56,019 --> 00:11:57,934 what was required of him. 230 00:11:57,934 --> 00:11:59,762 The manager did tell me 231 00:11:59,762 --> 00:12:02,939 that he had heard the rumors about Rosalinda 232 00:12:02,939 --> 00:12:06,725 and Omar's extramarital relationship. 233 00:12:06,725 --> 00:12:08,945 And also he did bring up the fact 234 00:12:08,945 --> 00:12:12,426 that at times he would see Saul in Vons, 235 00:12:12,426 --> 00:12:14,080 walking through the aisles 236 00:12:14,080 --> 00:12:17,257 as though he wanted to catch Omar and Rosalinda together. 237 00:12:17,257 --> 00:12:19,999 [tense music] 238 00:12:19,999 --> 00:12:22,045 [Narrator] Learning Saul's wife, Rosalinda, 239 00:12:22,045 --> 00:12:24,874 happens to be working her shift at the store, 240 00:12:24,874 --> 00:12:28,007 detectives pull her aside for an interview. 241 00:12:28,007 --> 00:12:30,923 She was very, very emotional. 242 00:12:30,923 --> 00:12:33,012 Rosalinda found out about the murder 243 00:12:33,012 --> 00:12:36,233 when she came in to work and became very upset. 244 00:12:36,233 --> 00:12:37,930 [tense music] 245 00:12:37,930 --> 00:12:40,193 [Narrator] Investigators confront Rosalinda 246 00:12:40,193 --> 00:12:41,934 about the rumors. 247 00:12:41,934 --> 00:12:44,545 Rosalinda denied that there was ever an affair 248 00:12:44,545 --> 00:12:48,071 or that there was any sexual relations between her and Omar. 249 00:12:49,202 --> 00:12:51,857 She said that her and Omar's relationship 250 00:12:51,857 --> 00:12:53,293 was purely platonic. 251 00:12:53,293 --> 00:12:55,861 And that her and him had been best friends. 252 00:12:55,861 --> 00:12:58,951 And that's the extent of their relationship. 253 00:12:58,951 --> 00:13:01,954 Rosalinda definitely gave me the sense 254 00:13:01,954 --> 00:13:04,739 that she was nervous. 255 00:13:04,739 --> 00:13:06,089 In talking to Rosalinda, 256 00:13:06,089 --> 00:13:08,265 she appeared to be holding back. 257 00:13:08,265 --> 00:13:10,702 [tense music] 258 00:13:10,702 --> 00:13:12,704 At this point, investigators weren't sure 259 00:13:12,704 --> 00:13:14,314 whether the affair was a rumor, 260 00:13:14,314 --> 00:13:15,881 whether it was true. 261 00:13:15,881 --> 00:13:18,841 It seemed like the jealousy involved 262 00:13:18,841 --> 00:13:21,974 in the case could have been enough for murder. 263 00:13:21,974 --> 00:13:25,717 When you see a murder that gruesome with that many bullets 264 00:13:25,717 --> 00:13:27,153 and that much violence, 265 00:13:27,153 --> 00:13:29,677 it comes out of some strong emotion. 266 00:13:29,677 --> 00:13:30,940 [tense music] 267 00:13:30,940 --> 00:13:32,680 [Narrator] Police know that, 268 00:13:32,680 --> 00:13:34,944 even if Saul had motive for murder, 269 00:13:34,944 --> 00:13:37,903 he also needed the opportunity. 270 00:13:37,903 --> 00:13:41,864 We asked Rosalinda where Saul was the previous night. 271 00:13:41,864 --> 00:13:44,736 And Rosalinda said that Saul was in bed 272 00:13:44,736 --> 00:13:46,042 with her the whole night. 273 00:13:46,042 --> 00:13:48,044 And then she ended up getting up for work 274 00:13:48,044 --> 00:13:49,828 around three that morning. 275 00:13:49,828 --> 00:13:51,917 And he was still in bed. [tense music] 276 00:13:53,266 --> 00:13:55,921 I wouldn't say that that particular alibi was rock solid. 277 00:13:55,921 --> 00:13:58,489 So interviewing him was very important, 278 00:13:58,489 --> 00:14:00,883 just to find out if their stories matched. 279 00:14:00,883 --> 00:14:03,407 [tense music] 280 00:14:05,061 --> 00:14:08,716 [Narrator] Investigators bring Saul down to the station. 281 00:14:08,716 --> 00:14:10,022 When I interviewed Saul, 282 00:14:10,022 --> 00:14:12,372 he was extremely calm, extremely courteous, 283 00:14:12,372 --> 00:14:14,897 and extremely cooperative. [tense music] 284 00:14:14,897 --> 00:14:18,726 He was very forthcoming about the altercations 285 00:14:18,726 --> 00:14:20,598 that had occurred with Omar in the past. 286 00:14:20,598 --> 00:14:22,078 And that he was afraid 287 00:14:22,078 --> 00:14:24,254 that Omar had had an affair with his wife. 288 00:14:24,254 --> 00:14:25,733 [tense music] 289 00:14:25,733 --> 00:14:27,605 [Narrator] Investigators ask Saul 290 00:14:27,605 --> 00:14:28,998 to account for his movements 291 00:14:28,998 --> 00:14:31,565 in the hours leading up to the murder. 292 00:14:31,565 --> 00:14:35,134 Saul claimed that he had gone to visit his uncle. 293 00:14:35,134 --> 00:14:38,572 And he was with his uncle throughout the night, 294 00:14:38,572 --> 00:14:40,183 before coming home. 295 00:14:40,183 --> 00:14:43,055 And went to bed right around 11 o'clock that evening. 296 00:14:43,055 --> 00:14:45,144 He said that he was asleep in his bed 297 00:14:45,144 --> 00:14:47,451 on the night of the murder and had nothing to do with it. 298 00:14:48,974 --> 00:14:51,803 He voluntarily provided a DNA reference sample 299 00:14:51,803 --> 00:14:53,065 to exclude him. 300 00:14:54,284 --> 00:14:56,808 Getting DNA from Saul was extremely important 301 00:14:56,808 --> 00:14:59,854 because he was a prime suspect in the shooting. 302 00:14:59,854 --> 00:15:01,160 And because, 303 00:15:01,160 --> 00:15:03,423 with fingerprints coming off the bullet casings, 304 00:15:03,423 --> 00:15:04,947 you can match the DNA. 305 00:15:04,947 --> 00:15:08,080 [tense music] 306 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:11,954 [Narrator] Saul also allows detectives to search his home. 307 00:15:11,954 --> 00:15:15,609 I searched the house for weapons, ammunition, 308 00:15:15,609 --> 00:15:20,005 or any evidence that could tie him to the crime. 309 00:15:20,005 --> 00:15:21,615 But I never found anything 310 00:15:21,615 --> 00:15:23,095 that would lead me to believe he had weapons 311 00:15:23,095 --> 00:15:24,488 or ammunition in the house. 312 00:15:24,488 --> 00:15:26,098 [tense music] 313 00:15:26,098 --> 00:15:27,882 [Narrator] When the results come in, 314 00:15:27,882 --> 00:15:31,016 Saul's DNA does not match the DNA found 315 00:15:31,016 --> 00:15:33,062 on the spent shell casings. 316 00:15:34,193 --> 00:15:36,630 His story seemed to be making sense. 317 00:15:36,630 --> 00:15:38,067 It seemed to be consistent. 318 00:15:38,067 --> 00:15:42,158 There was no indicators that he was lying to us. 319 00:15:43,637 --> 00:15:46,989 And so we didn't have anything to really move on. 320 00:15:46,989 --> 00:15:49,208 I didn't find him to be suspicious. 321 00:15:49,208 --> 00:15:51,471 He just wasn't connecting the dots for me. 322 00:15:51,471 --> 00:15:53,082 And from my training and experience, 323 00:15:53,082 --> 00:15:54,822 he did not give me any indication 324 00:15:54,822 --> 00:15:57,086 that he was involved in the shooting. 325 00:15:57,086 --> 00:15:59,044 And so that was really frustrating. 326 00:15:59,044 --> 00:16:01,916 [tense music] 327 00:16:01,916 --> 00:16:03,092 [Narrator] With detectives forced 328 00:16:03,092 --> 00:16:05,485 to put Saul on the back burner, 329 00:16:05,485 --> 00:16:08,053 they revisit the theory that Omar's murder 330 00:16:08,053 --> 00:16:10,142 could have been a professional hit. 331 00:16:11,100 --> 00:16:14,016 The weapon used, the AK-47. 332 00:16:14,016 --> 00:16:16,627 It's a weapon of murder, a weapon of violence. 333 00:16:16,627 --> 00:16:20,326 And so the nature of that weapon alone made people think 334 00:16:20,326 --> 00:16:22,807 this has something to do with a gang. 335 00:16:22,807 --> 00:16:24,113 [tense music] 336 00:16:24,113 --> 00:16:26,028 Because of the brutal nature of the crime, 337 00:16:26,028 --> 00:16:28,943 something we were looking at, is this the cartel? 338 00:16:28,943 --> 00:16:30,684 Is this a paid hit? 339 00:16:30,684 --> 00:16:33,078 It's gotta be big because of the way it was done. 340 00:16:34,906 --> 00:16:37,387 [tense music] 341 00:16:42,740 --> 00:16:45,177 [Narrator] Police investigating the ruthless shooting 342 00:16:45,177 --> 00:16:47,701 of Omar Hernandez outside his home 343 00:16:47,701 --> 00:16:49,399 in Mammoth Lakes, California 344 00:16:49,399 --> 00:16:53,446 now suspect he might have been targeted by a criminal gang. 345 00:16:53,446 --> 00:16:56,710 There was speculation that maybe this was a drug deal 346 00:16:56,710 --> 00:16:58,408 that went bad. 347 00:16:58,408 --> 00:17:01,498 And the cartel had come up and put a hit on Omar. 348 00:17:03,456 --> 00:17:06,981 Investigators went looking through Omar's background 349 00:17:06,981 --> 00:17:09,723 to see if there was any drug affiliations 350 00:17:09,723 --> 00:17:13,118 or anything that could have been tied to organized crime. 351 00:17:13,118 --> 00:17:14,380 [tense music] 352 00:17:14,380 --> 00:17:16,295 I didn't find anything in Omar's background 353 00:17:16,295 --> 00:17:19,342 that would indicate he had any gang association whatsoever. 354 00:17:27,176 --> 00:17:28,873 [Narrator] Investigators move on 355 00:17:28,873 --> 00:17:30,570 from the gangland hit theory. 356 00:17:31,789 --> 00:17:33,225 Several days later, 357 00:17:33,225 --> 00:17:35,314 they discover there's security camera footage 358 00:17:35,314 --> 00:17:37,360 from a building near Omar's home 359 00:17:37,360 --> 00:17:40,972 and hope the video will provide new leads. 360 00:17:40,972 --> 00:17:44,280 The closest camera that had any video surveillance 361 00:17:44,280 --> 00:17:47,152 was several hundred yards down the street. 362 00:17:47,152 --> 00:17:50,416 So you were capturing vehicles coming and going. 363 00:17:50,416 --> 00:17:52,331 Unfortunately, there were no cameras 364 00:17:52,331 --> 00:17:55,160 that were able to actually capture the crime 365 00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:56,335 as it occurred. 366 00:17:57,467 --> 00:17:59,208 What the security footage documented 367 00:17:59,208 --> 00:18:02,776 was a vehicle circling the area several times 368 00:18:02,776 --> 00:18:04,038 prior to the shooting. 369 00:18:04,038 --> 00:18:05,170 [tense music] 370 00:18:05,170 --> 00:18:06,476 We had what we believed 371 00:18:06,476 --> 00:18:08,869 was a light-colored four-door sedan. 372 00:18:08,869 --> 00:18:11,916 We felt pretty confident that it was a Toyota Camry 373 00:18:11,916 --> 00:18:13,526 or a Toyota Corolla. 374 00:18:13,526 --> 00:18:15,746 We felt like that vehicle possibly was involved. 375 00:18:15,746 --> 00:18:18,488 [tense music] 376 00:18:19,967 --> 00:18:22,187 [Narrator] Police spot another suspicious vehicle 377 00:18:22,187 --> 00:18:24,146 in the footage. [tense music] 378 00:18:24,146 --> 00:18:26,365 There was a red sedan-type vehicle 379 00:18:26,365 --> 00:18:28,846 that was seen at the intersection, 380 00:18:28,846 --> 00:18:31,501 driving down towards the victim residence. 381 00:18:33,067 --> 00:18:35,287 What was notable was it appeared less 382 00:18:35,287 --> 00:18:38,334 than two minutes prior to when the murder took place. 383 00:18:38,334 --> 00:18:41,206 And then the sedan pulled over 384 00:18:41,206 --> 00:18:43,208 near where the crime scene occurred. 385 00:18:43,208 --> 00:18:45,776 [tense music] 386 00:18:45,776 --> 00:18:48,474 Unfortunately, with the low image quality, 387 00:18:48,474 --> 00:18:52,174 we weren't able to identify who was in the suspect vehicles. 388 00:18:52,174 --> 00:18:54,654 [tense music] 389 00:18:56,265 --> 00:18:58,702 [Narrator] Undeterred, police show the footage 390 00:18:58,702 --> 00:19:00,094 to Omar's wife, 391 00:19:00,094 --> 00:19:02,706 hoping she can identify the vehicles. 392 00:19:02,706 --> 00:19:06,275 The red sedan provokes a strong reaction. 393 00:19:07,319 --> 00:19:09,539 Gladys said that day after the shooting, 394 00:19:09,539 --> 00:19:13,238 a red sedan drove by with two people inside of it 395 00:19:13,238 --> 00:19:16,328 that she recognized as Vons employees. 396 00:19:17,721 --> 00:19:20,898 She did say that they gave her a slow roll type of look 397 00:19:20,898 --> 00:19:23,248 as though letting her know they were watching her. 398 00:19:23,248 --> 00:19:25,294 Or maybe even they were involved. 399 00:19:36,174 --> 00:19:38,263 Gladys told investigators 400 00:19:38,263 --> 00:19:40,265 that the two individuals in the car 401 00:19:40,265 --> 00:19:43,399 were a Jose Antonio Corea Vasquez 402 00:19:43,399 --> 00:19:46,053 and Eliud Corea Vasquez. 403 00:19:46,053 --> 00:19:47,577 They were cousins. 404 00:19:47,577 --> 00:19:52,712 Gladys knew Eliud and Jose Antonio as coworkers of Omar's. 405 00:19:54,192 --> 00:19:55,889 At the time, their reputation was 406 00:19:55,889 --> 00:19:59,632 that they were MS-13 gang members from El Salvador. 407 00:19:59,632 --> 00:20:01,547 [Narrator] Detectives head to Vons 408 00:20:01,547 --> 00:20:05,377 to talk with Jose Antonio and Eliud's coworkers. 409 00:20:05,377 --> 00:20:07,074 Employees did tell me 410 00:20:07,074 --> 00:20:10,556 that Omar was the supervisor for the Salvadorians. 411 00:20:10,556 --> 00:20:12,471 And it appeared that they didn't like Omar. 412 00:20:12,471 --> 00:20:14,647 They didn't like taking orders from him. 413 00:20:14,647 --> 00:20:17,215 [tense music] 414 00:20:17,215 --> 00:20:18,956 [Narrator] Investigators learn 415 00:20:18,956 --> 00:20:21,524 that Omar had been promoted to a management position 416 00:20:21,524 --> 00:20:24,004 a few months before his murder. 417 00:20:24,004 --> 00:20:27,704 And that there was constant friction between him and Eliud. 418 00:20:29,227 --> 00:20:31,316 Eliud and Omar did not get along. 419 00:20:31,316 --> 00:20:33,231 In fact, there had actually been an incident 420 00:20:33,231 --> 00:20:34,711 between the two of them 421 00:20:34,711 --> 00:20:37,191 where Eliud had been sent home 422 00:20:37,191 --> 00:20:39,542 for not doing his job properly. 423 00:20:39,542 --> 00:20:43,546 Eliud became so upset that he contacted the union 424 00:20:43,546 --> 00:20:46,940 and made a formal complaint against Omar. 425 00:20:46,940 --> 00:20:49,465 [Narrator] Did Eliud take matters into his own hands 426 00:20:49,465 --> 00:20:51,684 with deadly consequences? [tense music] 427 00:20:51,684 --> 00:20:55,732 There's one more detail about him that raises suspicions. 428 00:20:56,646 --> 00:20:58,604 Eliud drove a red sedan. 429 00:20:58,604 --> 00:21:01,564 And it seemed to be a possible match 430 00:21:01,564 --> 00:21:03,740 to the car that was on the surveillance video. 431 00:21:04,741 --> 00:21:06,699 However, when we looked closer 432 00:21:06,699 --> 00:21:10,747 at the red sedan and Eliud's red sedan, 433 00:21:10,747 --> 00:21:13,445 it was clear immediately that they did not match. 434 00:21:13,445 --> 00:21:16,970 And that was not Eliud's car in that surveillance video. 435 00:21:16,970 --> 00:21:19,625 [Narrator] With Eliud looking less likely as the killer, 436 00:21:19,625 --> 00:21:21,497 investigators turned their focus 437 00:21:21,497 --> 00:21:24,630 to his cousin, Jose Antonio. 438 00:21:24,630 --> 00:21:27,807 He claimed to have some association to some gangs. 439 00:21:29,331 --> 00:21:32,246 We subsequently served a search warrant at his residence. 440 00:21:32,246 --> 00:21:34,205 We did find assault weapons, 441 00:21:34,205 --> 00:21:38,688 although they ended up being imitation airsoft-type weapons. 442 00:21:38,688 --> 00:21:40,429 So obviously they weren't involved 443 00:21:40,429 --> 00:21:41,952 in the actual murder itself. [tense music] 444 00:21:43,606 --> 00:21:46,348 We didn't find any definitive ties to Salvadorian gangs. 445 00:21:46,348 --> 00:21:48,262 I think it was just their bravado 446 00:21:48,262 --> 00:21:50,482 and they had a heavy reputation. 447 00:21:50,482 --> 00:21:52,702 And they knew people were afraid of them. 448 00:21:54,312 --> 00:21:57,707 [Narrator] Without anything concrete linking Jose Antonio 449 00:21:57,707 --> 00:22:00,492 or Eliud to Omar's death, 450 00:22:00,492 --> 00:22:02,929 detectives are forced to move on. 451 00:22:04,322 --> 00:22:05,671 That was just super frustrating. 452 00:22:05,671 --> 00:22:07,281 It just seemed like at every corner, 453 00:22:07,281 --> 00:22:09,109 there was something that we thought 454 00:22:09,109 --> 00:22:11,416 was going to really point us in the right direction 455 00:22:11,416 --> 00:22:13,418 and really break the case open for us. 456 00:22:13,418 --> 00:22:15,899 And it just was another dead end. 457 00:22:15,899 --> 00:22:18,162 [tense music] 458 00:22:18,162 --> 00:22:21,208 [Narrator] Just as the case threatens to hit a wall, 459 00:22:21,208 --> 00:22:24,647 investigators scouring Omar's cell phone activity 460 00:22:24,647 --> 00:22:27,432 make a jaw-dropping discovery. 461 00:22:27,432 --> 00:22:29,434 And combing through thousands and thousands 462 00:22:29,434 --> 00:22:30,740 of text messages, 463 00:22:30,740 --> 00:22:33,003 we did find many text messages 464 00:22:33,003 --> 00:22:35,962 where he and Rosalinda spoke to each other. 465 00:22:35,962 --> 00:22:37,616 And it became very clear 466 00:22:37,616 --> 00:22:39,836 that the rumors of the affair were definitely true. 467 00:22:40,619 --> 00:22:42,447 It also became apparent 468 00:22:42,447 --> 00:22:45,407 that not only was there an affair with Rosalinda, 469 00:22:45,407 --> 00:22:47,496 but that Gladys knew about the affair. 470 00:22:47,496 --> 00:22:48,845 [tense music] 471 00:22:48,845 --> 00:22:50,803 That was a cause for concern 472 00:22:50,803 --> 00:22:53,806 because initially the affair was denied by all parties 473 00:22:53,806 --> 00:22:57,070 at first when the investigation began. 474 00:22:57,070 --> 00:22:59,333 [Narrator] The texts force investigators 475 00:22:59,333 --> 00:23:01,553 to rethink everything. 476 00:23:01,553 --> 00:23:04,295 Why did Gladys and Rosalinda lie? 477 00:23:04,295 --> 00:23:07,777 Were either of them trying to cover up for a crime? 478 00:23:07,777 --> 00:23:11,824 And had Saul learned the truth and done the unthinkable? 479 00:23:11,824 --> 00:23:13,347 [tense music] 480 00:23:13,347 --> 00:23:14,871 There was a lot of evidence that showed 481 00:23:14,871 --> 00:23:16,655 that there were enough emotional ties involved in that 482 00:23:16,655 --> 00:23:19,179 that somebody could be angry enough 483 00:23:19,179 --> 00:23:22,313 to kill someone based off of that infidelity. 484 00:23:22,313 --> 00:23:24,794 [tense music] 485 00:23:31,670 --> 00:23:34,412 [Narrator] Weeks have passed since father-of-two, 486 00:23:34,412 --> 00:23:37,371 Omar Hernandez, was brutally gunned down. 487 00:23:37,371 --> 00:23:40,766 Detectives have just obtained proof a rumored affair 488 00:23:40,766 --> 00:23:45,989 between Omar and coworker Rosalinda did actually take place. 489 00:23:47,599 --> 00:23:50,820 Omar was involved romantically with Rosalinda. 490 00:23:50,820 --> 00:23:53,126 And through cell phone forensics, 491 00:23:53,126 --> 00:23:56,173 we located text messages that definitely confirmed 492 00:23:56,173 --> 00:23:58,915 that Omar had a conversation with Gladys as well 493 00:23:58,915 --> 00:24:02,135 about the affair that confirmed that she knew about it. 494 00:24:03,615 --> 00:24:05,530 [Narrator] Gladys had previously told police 495 00:24:05,530 --> 00:24:07,750 there was nothing to the rumored affair. 496 00:24:07,750 --> 00:24:10,840 So investigators had to speak to her again. 497 00:24:11,971 --> 00:24:13,843 When we asked Gladys about the affair, 498 00:24:13,843 --> 00:24:15,540 she broke down crying. 499 00:24:15,540 --> 00:24:18,848 And she confirmed the rumors to be true. 500 00:24:18,848 --> 00:24:21,938 Gladys described how she found out about the affair 501 00:24:21,938 --> 00:24:25,724 with Rosalinda back in 2014. 502 00:24:25,724 --> 00:24:29,772 She had returned home early from a trip to Mexico. 503 00:24:29,772 --> 00:24:32,426 And when she came back to their house, 504 00:24:32,426 --> 00:24:33,906 Omar wasn't there. [tense music] 505 00:24:33,906 --> 00:24:39,172 But there was burned wax and rose petals on the bed, 506 00:24:39,912 --> 00:24:41,523 on the floor around it. 507 00:24:41,523 --> 00:24:43,786 And she knew they weren't for her. 508 00:24:43,786 --> 00:24:45,657 So couple days after, 509 00:24:45,657 --> 00:24:47,920 she ended up going through her husband's phone 510 00:24:47,920 --> 00:24:51,663 and found the text messages between Omar and Rosalinda 511 00:24:51,663 --> 00:24:54,666 which confirmed to her that he had had an affair. 512 00:24:56,538 --> 00:24:57,800 [Narrator] Detectives asked Gladys 513 00:24:57,800 --> 00:24:59,889 why she lied to them before. 514 00:24:59,889 --> 00:25:02,065 What was she trying to hide? [tense music] 515 00:25:03,588 --> 00:25:06,635 Her reasoning behind lying about the affair 516 00:25:06,635 --> 00:25:10,334 was simply to protect Omar's reputation. 517 00:25:10,334 --> 00:25:14,556 He had a good reputation and she wanted to maintain that. 518 00:25:14,556 --> 00:25:16,862 And also, according to Gladys, 519 00:25:16,862 --> 00:25:18,647 they were working through their problems 520 00:25:18,647 --> 00:25:20,474 to keep their family together. 521 00:25:21,693 --> 00:25:23,521 She just didn't wanna have anything negative 522 00:25:23,521 --> 00:25:24,609 to say about her husband. 523 00:25:24,609 --> 00:25:26,524 He'd been brutally murdered. 524 00:25:26,524 --> 00:25:28,352 She kind of wanted to leave it at that. 525 00:25:28,352 --> 00:25:29,788 Let's investigate 526 00:25:29,788 --> 00:25:31,790 and try to figure out the person responsible. 527 00:25:33,575 --> 00:25:34,967 [Narrator] Police are also curious 528 00:25:34,967 --> 00:25:37,535 why Rosalinda had been untruthful 529 00:25:37,535 --> 00:25:39,232 and bring her in to the station. 530 00:25:41,452 --> 00:25:43,236 And told her we knew 531 00:25:43,236 --> 00:25:45,543 that she did have an affair with Omar. 532 00:25:45,543 --> 00:25:46,979 She told us that she lied 533 00:25:46,979 --> 00:25:49,373 because she was embarrassed about it. 534 00:25:49,373 --> 00:25:53,029 But also that she didn't want to inflame things with Saul. 535 00:25:53,029 --> 00:25:55,727 [tense music] 536 00:25:57,076 --> 00:25:59,557 We asked her whether he knew about the affair or not. 537 00:25:59,557 --> 00:26:01,341 She confirmed that he did know about it. 538 00:26:01,341 --> 00:26:05,215 She was definitely concerned about her husband. 539 00:26:05,215 --> 00:26:06,956 I asked her flat out 540 00:26:06,956 --> 00:26:10,829 if she believed that Saul may have killed Omar. 541 00:26:10,829 --> 00:26:13,658 And her answer to my question was, 542 00:26:13,658 --> 00:26:16,008 "I don't believe he pulled the trigger." 543 00:26:16,008 --> 00:26:17,880 So of course that was alarming. 544 00:26:17,880 --> 00:26:21,579 I thought maybe I missed something at the beginning. 545 00:26:21,579 --> 00:26:22,885 And that there was a potential 546 00:26:22,885 --> 00:26:25,714 that Saul may have actually 547 00:26:25,714 --> 00:26:28,934 even hired someone to kill Omar. 548 00:26:28,934 --> 00:26:31,937 It presents difficulty because then you have to backtrack 549 00:26:31,937 --> 00:26:34,810 and look at the initial suspect once again 550 00:26:34,810 --> 00:26:37,073 and make sure you haven't overlooked anything. 551 00:26:37,073 --> 00:26:38,640 [tense music] 552 00:26:38,640 --> 00:26:40,424 [Narrator] Investigators re-look at Saul. 553 00:26:40,424 --> 00:26:43,383 But after combing through phone records and texts, 554 00:26:43,383 --> 00:26:47,039 find no evidence he hired anyone to kill Omar 555 00:26:47,039 --> 00:26:49,694 or that he committed the crime himself. 556 00:26:49,694 --> 00:26:51,304 [tense music] 557 00:26:51,304 --> 00:26:53,785 At this point, the evidence did not bear fruit 558 00:26:53,785 --> 00:26:56,658 that Saul was the suspect we were looking for. 559 00:26:56,658 --> 00:26:58,311 His alibi checked out. 560 00:26:58,311 --> 00:27:00,096 There was nothing else that ever came up 561 00:27:00,096 --> 00:27:03,795 that pointed him as being the one who did this. 562 00:27:04,970 --> 00:27:07,451 [Narrator] Saul is cleared once again. 563 00:27:07,451 --> 00:27:11,629 With yet another busted lead and no arrest in sight, 564 00:27:11,629 --> 00:27:13,675 police have to contend with the fear 565 00:27:13,675 --> 00:27:16,068 that's gripping Mammoth Lakes. 566 00:27:16,068 --> 00:27:17,722 It was pretty hard for the community 567 00:27:17,722 --> 00:27:19,811 to have all these investigations going on 568 00:27:19,811 --> 00:27:21,944 and talk of murder and gossip of violence 569 00:27:21,944 --> 00:27:24,120 and the things that led to it. 570 00:27:24,120 --> 00:27:25,774 But no answers. 571 00:27:25,774 --> 00:27:27,471 Just dead ends. 572 00:27:27,471 --> 00:27:30,343 I think people genuinely were fearing for their lives 573 00:27:30,343 --> 00:27:33,085 because the killer was still out there. 574 00:27:48,231 --> 00:27:50,929 [tense music] 575 00:27:53,410 --> 00:27:55,804 [Narrator] Despite months of tireless work, 576 00:27:55,804 --> 00:27:58,763 investigators run out of leads. 577 00:27:58,763 --> 00:28:01,331 The case essentially went cold. 578 00:28:01,331 --> 00:28:02,854 There was nothing 579 00:28:02,854 --> 00:28:05,204 to indicate any one person was responsible. 580 00:28:06,728 --> 00:28:08,033 At this point, 581 00:28:08,033 --> 00:28:10,427 we're well over a year into the investigation. 582 00:28:10,427 --> 00:28:12,951 And the question starts to creep in of, 583 00:28:12,951 --> 00:28:16,041 is this one that may never be solved? 584 00:28:16,041 --> 00:28:18,000 It starts to weigh on you 585 00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:20,698 because we've formed relationships with Gladys 586 00:28:20,698 --> 00:28:22,004 and we want nothing more 587 00:28:22,004 --> 00:28:24,223 than to bring justice for her family. 588 00:28:24,223 --> 00:28:25,790 [tense music] 589 00:28:25,790 --> 00:28:27,444 It definitely wears on you as an investigator. 590 00:28:27,444 --> 00:28:30,012 You constantly ask yourself, what did I miss? 591 00:28:30,012 --> 00:28:32,362 There's gotta be something there that I missed. 592 00:28:48,987 --> 00:28:50,684 We had always been feeling 593 00:28:50,684 --> 00:28:53,775 that if we could just get that one piece of information 594 00:28:53,775 --> 00:28:55,864 that could lead us to the suspect, 595 00:28:55,864 --> 00:28:57,430 we'll develop the rest. 596 00:28:57,430 --> 00:28:59,215 But we needed somebody to come forward 597 00:28:59,215 --> 00:29:02,261 and give us a break that we needed to solve that case. 598 00:29:02,261 --> 00:29:04,220 [tense music] 599 00:29:04,220 --> 00:29:06,004 [Narrator] 2 1/2 years later, 600 00:29:06,004 --> 00:29:08,659 detectives receive just that. 601 00:29:08,659 --> 00:29:12,315 An explosive phone call that upends the whole case. 602 00:29:12,315 --> 00:29:13,229 [tense music] 603 00:29:13,229 --> 00:29:14,883 In June, 2019, 604 00:29:14,883 --> 00:29:16,754 a person called and said 605 00:29:16,754 --> 00:29:18,930 that they know who killed Omar 606 00:29:18,930 --> 00:29:21,977 and has some concerns for their own safety. 607 00:29:21,977 --> 00:29:24,631 In my mind, I felt that that's the big break 608 00:29:24,631 --> 00:29:25,807 that we needed. [tense music] 609 00:29:25,807 --> 00:29:26,895 Sometimes that's all it is. 610 00:29:26,895 --> 00:29:29,027 One person with information. 611 00:29:29,027 --> 00:29:31,377 I knew right then it was huge. 612 00:29:31,377 --> 00:29:34,032 [tense music] 613 00:29:38,689 --> 00:29:41,474 [Narrator] 2 1/2 years since the brutal slaying 614 00:29:41,474 --> 00:29:43,128 of Omar Hernandez, 615 00:29:43,128 --> 00:29:45,957 an informant has come forward with information 616 00:29:45,957 --> 00:29:48,960 that blows the case wide open. 617 00:29:48,960 --> 00:29:52,311 A man by the name of Francisco Ramirez came 618 00:29:52,311 --> 00:29:53,965 into our office. 619 00:29:53,965 --> 00:29:55,967 And you could tell that something was scaring him. 620 00:29:55,967 --> 00:29:58,274 He said that he was in fear for his life 621 00:29:58,274 --> 00:30:00,189 for what he was gonna tell us. 622 00:30:01,712 --> 00:30:04,106 Francisco started telling us about this individual. 623 00:30:04,106 --> 00:30:07,152 His name was Josue Corea Vasquez. 624 00:30:07,152 --> 00:30:09,807 And he was a coworker at Vons. 625 00:30:09,807 --> 00:30:11,896 They both worked the night shift. 626 00:30:11,896 --> 00:30:14,856 Francisco worked with Josue. 627 00:30:14,856 --> 00:30:16,466 And Josue was actually 628 00:30:16,466 --> 00:30:18,207 the brother to Eliud. 629 00:30:18,207 --> 00:30:21,340 And he describes this contentious relationship 630 00:30:21,340 --> 00:30:25,083 between Omar and Eliud and Josue. 631 00:30:25,083 --> 00:30:26,519 Months before the murder, 632 00:30:26,519 --> 00:30:28,434 says that they were constantly butting heads 633 00:30:28,434 --> 00:30:30,175 with one another. 634 00:30:30,175 --> 00:30:33,048 Described Eliud and Josue as constantly disrespecting Omar. 635 00:30:33,048 --> 00:30:36,703 Omar would delegate tasks that need to be completed 636 00:30:36,703 --> 00:30:40,055 and Eliud and Josue would always be disrespectful 637 00:30:40,055 --> 00:30:41,795 and say, "Well, why do we gotta do that? 638 00:30:41,795 --> 00:30:43,145 Nah, I don't think so." 639 00:30:43,145 --> 00:30:45,234 Was just constantly kind of challenging him. 640 00:30:46,757 --> 00:30:50,021 Josue had actually told Francisco that he hated Omar 641 00:30:50,021 --> 00:30:51,762 because he had been disrespected 642 00:30:51,762 --> 00:30:54,721 and that he had threatened to fire his whole family. 643 00:30:54,721 --> 00:30:58,290 And that he had to take matters into his own hands. 644 00:31:00,814 --> 00:31:04,079 Then, just several hours after the murder had occurred, 645 00:31:04,079 --> 00:31:05,558 Francisco told us 646 00:31:05,558 --> 00:31:08,170 that he received a text message from Josue. 647 00:31:08,170 --> 00:31:09,954 And it said something to the effect of, 648 00:31:09,954 --> 00:31:12,130 "See? I'm not playing around." 649 00:31:12,130 --> 00:31:14,959 And then there was another text message that said, 650 00:31:14,959 --> 00:31:17,048 "Nobody messes with me." 651 00:31:17,048 --> 00:31:19,050 [tense music] 652 00:31:19,050 --> 00:31:20,617 When he saw the text message, 653 00:31:20,617 --> 00:31:23,402 he felt very strongly that that is Josue's way 654 00:31:23,402 --> 00:31:26,188 of telling him he just murdered Omar. 655 00:31:27,972 --> 00:31:29,365 [Narrator] Francisco then divulges 656 00:31:29,365 --> 00:31:32,368 another disturbing piece of information. 657 00:31:32,368 --> 00:31:35,371 Francisco told us that he had actually gone shooting 658 00:31:35,371 --> 00:31:38,156 with Josue months prior to the murder. 659 00:31:38,156 --> 00:31:41,246 They had gone out in the middle of the forest 660 00:31:41,246 --> 00:31:44,946 and that Josue had brought an AK-47 with him. 661 00:31:44,946 --> 00:31:47,078 And were just shooting targets. 662 00:31:47,078 --> 00:31:49,863 When Francisco mentioned AK-47, 663 00:31:49,863 --> 00:31:52,083 obviously all of our ears perked up 664 00:31:52,083 --> 00:31:54,433 as that's the weapon we were looking for. 665 00:31:54,433 --> 00:31:55,782 [tense music] 666 00:31:55,782 --> 00:31:58,350 And then several years after Omar was murdered, 667 00:31:58,350 --> 00:32:03,529 Francisco became the manager to take Omar's place at Vons. 668 00:32:05,270 --> 00:32:06,968 And he's now in a position to where he needs to delegate. 669 00:32:06,968 --> 00:32:11,624 And he's now seeing the same disrespectful tone from Josue. 670 00:32:12,364 --> 00:32:14,062 At some point in time, 671 00:32:14,062 --> 00:32:15,324 he and Josue got into an argument. 672 00:32:15,324 --> 00:32:18,240 And Josue says something to the effect of, 673 00:32:18,240 --> 00:32:20,590 "Don't make me do to you what I did to Omar." 674 00:32:20,590 --> 00:32:22,374 [tense music] 675 00:32:22,374 --> 00:32:25,987 We asked Francisco why he is now just coming forward, 676 00:32:25,987 --> 00:32:28,032 2 1/2 years after the murder. 677 00:32:28,032 --> 00:32:32,428 And Francisco said that he was scared of Josue. 678 00:32:33,907 --> 00:32:35,344 He was concerned for his safety. 679 00:32:35,344 --> 00:32:37,781 And he wanted to tell law enforcement about what he knew. 680 00:32:37,781 --> 00:32:40,044 Because he said, if something is to happen to me, 681 00:32:40,044 --> 00:32:42,351 I want you guys to know who's responsible. 682 00:32:42,351 --> 00:32:45,310 Francisco realized I could be the one that's next. 683 00:32:45,310 --> 00:32:47,138 And this guy needs to be stopped. 684 00:32:47,138 --> 00:32:48,444 [tense music] 685 00:32:48,444 --> 00:32:50,402 [Narrator] Detectives contact Gladys 686 00:32:50,402 --> 00:32:54,145 to gather more information about the working relationship 687 00:32:54,145 --> 00:32:56,713 between Omar and Josue. 688 00:32:56,713 --> 00:32:59,020 Gladys did tell us that 689 00:32:59,020 --> 00:33:01,022 when Josue first came to the States, 690 00:33:01,022 --> 00:33:02,153 he didn't have a lotta friends. 691 00:33:02,153 --> 00:33:04,112 He didn't know very many people. 692 00:33:04,112 --> 00:33:08,942 And Omar had taken Josue under his wing. 693 00:33:08,942 --> 00:33:10,292 Omar was kind to him. 694 00:33:10,292 --> 00:33:13,469 Would bring him food for lunch breaks. 695 00:33:13,469 --> 00:33:15,514 Really seemed to keep an eye on Josue 696 00:33:15,514 --> 00:33:17,560 and care about his wellbeing. 697 00:33:28,962 --> 00:33:30,529 Omar and Josue seem to get along 698 00:33:30,529 --> 00:33:32,749 for many months during that time period. 699 00:33:34,055 --> 00:33:35,360 [tense music] 700 00:33:35,360 --> 00:33:37,754 But Gladys told us that once Omar 701 00:33:37,754 --> 00:33:39,321 was promoted to supervisor, 702 00:33:39,321 --> 00:33:42,628 things started to change between Omar and Josue. 703 00:33:50,767 --> 00:33:52,160 Omar had a job to do. 704 00:33:52,160 --> 00:33:55,076 And as Omar started giving more direction 705 00:33:55,076 --> 00:33:57,034 and instructions to Josue, 706 00:33:57,034 --> 00:34:01,125 Josue started to be a bit more belligerent towards him. 707 00:34:01,125 --> 00:34:03,693 Talking back, refusing to do certain things. 708 00:34:03,693 --> 00:34:05,390 [tense music] 709 00:34:05,390 --> 00:34:08,045 There had been reported conflicts between the two 710 00:34:08,045 --> 00:34:12,310 and that Josue had felt like Omar was on a power trip. 711 00:34:13,137 --> 00:34:14,878 They didn't get along at work. 712 00:34:14,878 --> 00:34:17,576 They were constantly arguing with one another. 713 00:34:17,576 --> 00:34:19,448 [tense music] 714 00:34:19,448 --> 00:34:21,189 [Narrator] Could a workplace conflict 715 00:34:21,189 --> 00:34:23,191 have turned in into murder? 716 00:34:23,191 --> 00:34:25,976 Investigators pulled the employee time sheets 717 00:34:25,976 --> 00:34:28,326 for the night Omar was killed. 718 00:34:28,326 --> 00:34:32,548 We went back through the Vons records from that night 719 00:34:32,548 --> 00:34:34,854 to see when people clocked in. 720 00:34:34,854 --> 00:34:38,423 And we noticed that Josue did not work at all that night. 721 00:34:39,990 --> 00:34:43,298 We also looked into what vehicle does Josue drive. 722 00:34:43,298 --> 00:34:44,560 [tense music] 723 00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:46,039 [Narrator] Detectives are hopeful 724 00:34:46,039 --> 00:34:48,041 that Josue's car will be a match 725 00:34:48,041 --> 00:34:50,000 to one of two vehicles spotted 726 00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:51,610 in the surveillance footage. 727 00:34:51,610 --> 00:34:54,526 We determined that at the time of the murder in 2016, 728 00:34:54,526 --> 00:34:59,314 he did, in fact, own a 2012 silver Toyota Camry. 729 00:34:59,314 --> 00:35:01,446 That vehicle, shortly after the murder, 730 00:35:01,446 --> 00:35:03,579 had been resold to another individual. 731 00:35:03,579 --> 00:35:06,277 So we ended up finding that vehicle down 732 00:35:06,277 --> 00:35:08,192 in another part of California. 733 00:35:08,192 --> 00:35:09,846 And it was the same vehicle 734 00:35:09,846 --> 00:35:12,370 that we'd seen in the video surveillance. 735 00:35:13,545 --> 00:35:15,895 It matched the color and the make and model 736 00:35:15,895 --> 00:35:17,375 of what we were looking for. [tense music] 737 00:35:17,375 --> 00:35:18,898 At that moment, 738 00:35:18,898 --> 00:35:20,204 we felt that we had the person responsible 739 00:35:20,204 --> 00:35:21,858 for the murder of Omar. 740 00:35:24,121 --> 00:35:25,253 [Narrator] Needing hard evidence 741 00:35:25,253 --> 00:35:27,472 to tie Josue to the murder, 742 00:35:27,472 --> 00:35:29,082 detectives head to the area 743 00:35:29,082 --> 00:35:33,348 where Francisco had witnessed him firing an AK-47. 744 00:35:34,479 --> 00:35:36,307 It wasn't a designated shooting range. 745 00:35:36,307 --> 00:35:40,268 It was a dirt road off of a main highway. 746 00:35:40,268 --> 00:35:42,879 We went out to the range 747 00:35:42,879 --> 00:35:45,316 where he said that he shot with Josue. 748 00:35:45,316 --> 00:35:49,581 And we were actually able to recover 56 cartridges 749 00:35:49,581 --> 00:35:51,496 that were just below the dirt. 750 00:35:51,496 --> 00:35:54,456 All of these cartridges were extremely important 751 00:35:54,456 --> 00:35:56,675 because, as we grabbed the first cartridge, 752 00:35:56,675 --> 00:36:00,592 we saw it had the same head stamp of the cartridges 753 00:36:00,592 --> 00:36:02,507 found at the murder scene. [tense music] 754 00:36:04,292 --> 00:36:05,684 When we found shell casings, 755 00:36:05,684 --> 00:36:07,773 it just really hit you in the gut. 756 00:36:09,471 --> 00:36:12,213 We thought, wow, this is the first break that we've had. 757 00:36:12,213 --> 00:36:14,780 [tense music] 758 00:36:20,308 --> 00:36:23,702 [Narrator] 2 1/2 years after Omar Hernan 759 00:36:23,702 --> 00:36:26,966 investigators hoped they finally got a break 760 00:36:26,966 --> 00:36:29,230 after discovering spent bullet casings 761 00:36:29,230 --> 00:36:32,668 that appear to match those recovered from the crime scene. 762 00:36:33,625 --> 00:36:35,279 We found north of 50 763 00:36:35,279 --> 00:36:37,194 expended projectiles in the 764 00:36:37,194 --> 00:36:40,241 dirt and sent those casings back 765 00:36:40,241 --> 00:36:43,418 to the laboratory for comparison. 766 00:36:43,418 --> 00:36:46,290 After we compared the two casings together, 767 00:36:46,290 --> 00:36:49,467 one from the murder scene and one from the shooting range, 768 00:36:49,467 --> 00:36:51,513 the lab told us that they were fired 769 00:36:51,513 --> 00:36:52,905 from the same gun. 770 00:36:54,864 --> 00:36:57,562 This was huge in the investigation. 771 00:36:57,562 --> 00:36:59,477 We have an identified suspect 772 00:36:59,477 --> 00:37:01,697 and we have physical evidence. [tense music] 773 00:37:04,613 --> 00:37:07,485 [Narrator] On January 30th, 2020, 774 00:37:07,485 --> 00:37:11,794 Josue Corea Vasquez is arrested for Omar's murder. 775 00:37:12,664 --> 00:37:14,623 After Josue was arrested, 776 00:37:14,623 --> 00:37:16,364 we brought him in for an interview. 777 00:37:16,364 --> 00:37:19,367 We knew that the shell casings recovered at the crime scene 778 00:37:19,367 --> 00:37:21,194 were the same as the shooting range. 779 00:37:21,194 --> 00:37:25,329 What we didn't have was a way to tie that in to Josue. 780 00:37:25,329 --> 00:37:27,592 So what we decided to do was 781 00:37:27,592 --> 00:37:31,335 create a fake DNA profile 782 00:37:31,335 --> 00:37:32,858 that would be shown to Josue. 783 00:37:32,858 --> 00:37:35,644 And what it said was that we recovered DNA 784 00:37:35,644 --> 00:37:37,428 from the shell casings. 785 00:37:37,428 --> 00:37:38,821 And that it matched somebody 786 00:37:38,821 --> 00:37:42,390 of the same age and ethnicity as Josue. 787 00:37:42,390 --> 00:37:45,175 The goal of having the DNA profile 788 00:37:45,175 --> 00:37:49,571 was in hopes that it would push Josue to tell the truth. 789 00:37:50,789 --> 00:37:52,878 [Narrator] Detectives also use another tactic 790 00:37:52,878 --> 00:37:54,967 and make an emotional appeal. 791 00:37:56,708 --> 00:37:58,754 Investigator Callinan actually had a photograph 792 00:37:58,754 --> 00:38:01,583 of Omar's children on his desk. 793 00:38:02,410 --> 00:38:03,715 I showed him the kids. 794 00:38:03,715 --> 00:38:05,369 And I said, "These kids, they don't deserve 795 00:38:05,369 --> 00:38:06,718 what happened to him. 796 00:38:06,718 --> 00:38:07,937 Let's try to give 'em some closure." 797 00:38:12,420 --> 00:38:14,552 [Narrator] Josue stuns investigators 798 00:38:14,552 --> 00:38:16,685 with what he says next. 799 00:38:32,135 --> 00:38:33,745 [tense music] 800 00:38:33,745 --> 00:38:36,574 It was a monumental moment that we felt, 801 00:38:36,574 --> 00:38:38,141 okay, we've got the right guy. 802 00:38:40,361 --> 00:38:41,710 [Narrator] The question remains, 803 00:38:41,710 --> 00:38:44,930 why would Josue commit such a heinous crime? 804 00:38:44,930 --> 00:38:45,844 [tense music] 805 00:38:45,844 --> 00:38:48,107 Josue told us he hated Omar. 806 00:38:48,107 --> 00:38:51,633 He hated that he would tell him how to do his job. 807 00:38:51,633 --> 00:38:54,853 He hated that he would be tough on him. 808 00:38:54,853 --> 00:38:57,943 He felt that he was disrespected by Omar. 809 00:38:57,943 --> 00:39:00,381 And he was there to teach Omar lesson. 810 00:39:01,817 --> 00:39:04,602 [Narrator] Josue proceeded to tell investigators 811 00:39:04,602 --> 00:39:07,039 what happened that fatal night. 812 00:39:11,957 --> 00:39:16,484 He said that he drove by Omar's residence 813 00:39:16,484 --> 00:39:18,311 a number of times. 814 00:39:18,311 --> 00:39:20,836 Confirmed that the vehicle in the video surveillance 815 00:39:20,836 --> 00:39:22,794 was, in fact, his vehicle. 816 00:39:28,496 --> 00:39:29,801 Just before 2:00 AM, 817 00:39:29,801 --> 00:39:33,631 Josue parked across the street from Omar's home. 818 00:39:33,631 --> 00:39:35,111 And he waited for him to come out. 819 00:39:35,111 --> 00:39:36,068 [tense music] 820 00:39:40,508 --> 00:39:42,771 He saw Omar come out of his residence. 821 00:39:42,771 --> 00:39:46,383 And that was the moment that he'd been waiting for. 822 00:39:46,383 --> 00:39:48,777 He grabbed the AK-47. 823 00:39:48,777 --> 00:39:51,954 When Omar went to the driver's side of the door to leave, 824 00:39:51,954 --> 00:39:55,218 Josue emerged from the trees and yelled at him, 825 00:39:55,218 --> 00:39:57,786 "You don't look so invincible now, do you?" 826 00:39:57,786 --> 00:40:00,441 And described shooting him several times. 827 00:40:07,012 --> 00:40:09,493 He described the look in Omar's face. 828 00:40:09,493 --> 00:40:11,147 The surprise, the shock. 829 00:40:11,147 --> 00:40:13,845 [tense music] 830 00:40:26,292 --> 00:40:29,426 Josue said that after he murdered Omar, he went home. 831 00:40:29,426 --> 00:40:30,906 He went to bed. 832 00:40:30,906 --> 00:40:32,951 A lot of Josue's interview was matter of fact, 833 00:40:32,951 --> 00:40:34,953 which was chilling in and of itself 834 00:40:34,953 --> 00:40:37,521 that you can have murdered somebody 835 00:40:37,521 --> 00:40:42,134 and just be talking about it in such an unemotional way. 836 00:40:43,919 --> 00:40:46,138 [Narrator] Josue admits that several days 837 00:40:46,138 --> 00:40:47,531 after killing Omar, 838 00:40:47,531 --> 00:40:50,882 he told his brother, Eliud, what he had done. 839 00:40:50,882 --> 00:40:53,711 Eliud was concerned about the murder weapon 840 00:40:53,711 --> 00:40:56,801 and whether it could be traced back to Josue. 841 00:40:56,801 --> 00:40:59,021 So Eliud took it upon himself 842 00:40:59,021 --> 00:41:04,287 to take the AK-47 to the forest and bury it 843 00:41:05,767 --> 00:41:07,246 so no one would ever be able to find it. 844 00:41:07,246 --> 00:41:08,857 [Narrator] Based on Josue's confession, 845 00:41:08,857 --> 00:41:10,772 police bring in Eliud. 846 00:41:12,600 --> 00:41:13,949 He eventually admitted to us 847 00:41:13,949 --> 00:41:15,994 that he did help dispose of the gun. 848 00:41:15,994 --> 00:41:18,867 And gave us the details about where it was. 849 00:41:18,867 --> 00:41:20,912 And he pointed to the exact location 850 00:41:20,912 --> 00:41:23,262 where the firearm would be recovered. 851 00:41:23,262 --> 00:41:26,831 So we dug right there and, sure enough, found an AK-47. 852 00:41:28,311 --> 00:41:31,444 At this point, it's kind of a prosecutor's dream. 853 00:41:31,444 --> 00:41:34,578 We have a confession statement from the defendant 854 00:41:34,578 --> 00:41:36,058 and the murder weapon 855 00:41:36,058 --> 00:41:38,582 that we never thought we would recover just showed up. 856 00:41:38,582 --> 00:41:41,716 [tense music] 857 00:41:41,716 --> 00:41:43,805 [Narrator] For his part in the crime, 858 00:41:43,805 --> 00:41:46,808 Eliud is sentenced to a year in jail. 859 00:41:48,200 --> 00:41:51,552 Eliud was charged as being an accessory after the fact. 860 00:41:51,552 --> 00:41:56,121 He was charged for helping dispose of the murder weapon 861 00:41:56,121 --> 00:41:58,515 and not telling authorities about it. 862 00:41:58,515 --> 00:41:59,908 [tense music] 863 00:41:59,908 --> 00:42:02,780 [Narrator] On January 18th, 2022, 864 00:42:02,780 --> 00:42:06,610 Josue is sentenced to two life terms in prison 865 00:42:06,610 --> 00:42:08,830 for the murder of Omar Hernandez. 866 00:42:08,830 --> 00:42:11,572 [tense music] 867 00:42:26,978 --> 00:42:29,764 The biggest surprise was that it was somebody 868 00:42:29,764 --> 00:42:31,809 that you just never really would've expected. 869 00:42:31,809 --> 00:42:35,334 Omar had taken Josue under his wing. 870 00:42:35,334 --> 00:42:39,382 By all accounts, Omar cared very much about Josue. 871 00:42:40,905 --> 00:42:43,081 That's what was so troubling in this case, 872 00:42:43,081 --> 00:42:45,997 Omar lost his life, was brutally murdered, 873 00:42:45,997 --> 00:42:50,654 for no reason other than he was a hard working individual 874 00:42:50,654 --> 00:42:52,395 who had expectations. [tense music] 875 00:43:04,233 --> 00:43:07,540 [Narrator] Omar's family still feels the deep impact 876 00:43:07,540 --> 00:43:08,890 of his loss. [melancholy music]