Tweet
Sad to see another go under these circumstances.
Originally posted by The Monitor
SAN JUAN — A San Juan policeman who killed his wife before taking his own had a history of domestic abuse with the woman he had married less than a year ago, relatives of the victim said.
San Juan Police Chief Juan Gonzalez confirmed that officers responded to Officer Jose Hernandez's apartment at 3901 N. Raul Longoria Road, No. 4., in reference to a shooting about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.
The victims have been identified as Hernandez, 47, an eight-year veteran of the San Juan Police Department, and his wife, 46-year-old Rosa Maria Castillo.
Investigators said Hernandez shot his wife once, then did the same to himself.
"We are continuing the investigation," Gonzalez said. "Nothing will be left unturned."
Officers found Hernandez and his wife shot dead in their apartment after they arrived Tuesday morning.
Relatives of Castillo said they knew that Hernandez would beat his wife, but they do not believe the abuse was ever reported to police. Gonzalez said officers continue to review police records to see if there were any reported incidents of abuse.
When he found out, son-in-law Joe Estrada said he "knew it was a murder-suicide" when he found out Hernandez and Castillo had been shot about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday. Estrada confirmed his suspicion as police gave a conference to local reporters and television media later in the afternoon.
"We couldn't believe it happened," he said.
Estrada said Castillo and Hernandez married in February. The two had met after Hernandez was transporting Castillo to the Hidalgo County Jail when she was arrested for driving while intoxicated.
Relatives said Castillo knew the hits and threats she took from Hernandez were wrong, but she did not want her husband to be arrested.
"She would say, 'No, I love him,'" Estrada said. "For us, we would just let her be. She was starting a new life."
Texas Rangers are assisting San Juan police detectives in the murder-suicide investigation. Weslaco police brought in the department's mobile command center to assist.
POLICE VETERAN
Hernandez had spent eight years and two months as a San Juan policeman, records from the Texas Commission On Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education show.
Before his time in San Juan, Hernandez spent two months as an officer in Donna, three years as a deputy with the Hidalgo County Precinct 2 Constable's Office and more than 12 years as a police officer in Hidalgo.
Neighbor Jo Maria Garza said she was coming back from work about 1 p.m. Tuesday when she found homicide investigators blocking off the entrance to her home. Garza said she lives next-door to where the shootings occurred.
As she stood outside a her landlord's house, Garza, 67, watched as relatives of the dead huddled together off in the distance and bawled.
"That's life," she said in Spanish, shaking her head. "That it is."
San Juan Police Chief Juan Gonzalez confirmed that officers responded to Officer Jose Hernandez's apartment at 3901 N. Raul Longoria Road, No. 4., in reference to a shooting about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.
The victims have been identified as Hernandez, 47, an eight-year veteran of the San Juan Police Department, and his wife, 46-year-old Rosa Maria Castillo.
Investigators said Hernandez shot his wife once, then did the same to himself.
"We are continuing the investigation," Gonzalez said. "Nothing will be left unturned."
Officers found Hernandez and his wife shot dead in their apartment after they arrived Tuesday morning.
Relatives of Castillo said they knew that Hernandez would beat his wife, but they do not believe the abuse was ever reported to police. Gonzalez said officers continue to review police records to see if there were any reported incidents of abuse.
When he found out, son-in-law Joe Estrada said he "knew it was a murder-suicide" when he found out Hernandez and Castillo had been shot about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday. Estrada confirmed his suspicion as police gave a conference to local reporters and television media later in the afternoon.
"We couldn't believe it happened," he said.
Estrada said Castillo and Hernandez married in February. The two had met after Hernandez was transporting Castillo to the Hidalgo County Jail when she was arrested for driving while intoxicated.
Relatives said Castillo knew the hits and threats she took from Hernandez were wrong, but she did not want her husband to be arrested.
"She would say, 'No, I love him,'" Estrada said. "For us, we would just let her be. She was starting a new life."
Texas Rangers are assisting San Juan police detectives in the murder-suicide investigation. Weslaco police brought in the department's mobile command center to assist.
POLICE VETERAN
Hernandez had spent eight years and two months as a San Juan policeman, records from the Texas Commission On Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education show.
Before his time in San Juan, Hernandez spent two months as an officer in Donna, three years as a deputy with the Hidalgo County Precinct 2 Constable's Office and more than 12 years as a police officer in Hidalgo.
Neighbor Jo Maria Garza said she was coming back from work about 1 p.m. Tuesday when she found homicide investigators blocking off the entrance to her home. Garza said she lives next-door to where the shootings occurred.
As she stood outside a her landlord's house, Garza, 67, watched as relatives of the dead huddled together off in the distance and bawled.
"That's life," she said in Spanish, shaking her head. "That it is."
Comment