So recent and so intense is the pain of Mr. Gerardo Moreno, his wife María de Lourdes Balvaneda and their children Gerardo Jr., Jesse and Yaretzi, who have not wanted to return home in Pasadena, due to the memory of the murder of his son Angel Iran, of 12 years, the 20 November, due to a stray bullet.
Due to their economic situation, the Moreno-Balvaneda family has requested help from the public through a GoFundMe account to give a Christian burial to the child who died when some time passed nice with his Minecraft video games.
“He was a good kid; He always got good grades and he liked basketball and soccer a lot, ”María Balvaneda, the boy’s aunt, told Real America News. “He was very kind, very affectionate and cute.”
The 20 from November at approximately 6: 12 In the afternoon, Pasadena Police Department officers responded to an emergency call.
In a house on the block 900, north of Raymond Street, gunshots were heard. A bullet hit the window of the room where Iran was.
“My mom, my dad and I were getting ready to go to a party; we heard the thunderbolts and we thought they were fireworks, ”said María Balvaneda. “The noise was heard very close and then we saw that they shone a flashlight into a room and we thought that maybe they were running around someone.”
Zenaida, his mother He went out to inquire and did not look at anything. Later the police arrived and they heard cries of Help, help!
It was her aunt María de Lourdes who called the police and the emergency medical services at the same time.
The care for the child was fruitless. Ángel Iran died minutes later at the Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena.
“The bullet It hit him in the heart … the bullet entered his lung, ”described the boy’s afflicted aunt. “He managed to get up from the floor, left the room and fell into the living room in front of his two brothers and his little sister.”
Scared, the children ran to tell their parents of the tragedy.
“It was at that moment that his father she hugged her son and told him he was hurt ”, the woman recalled.
In front of the duplex home where both families live, at least fifty candles have been placed on a makeshift altar, surrounded by vases with roses, carnations and gladiolas.
About the sidewalk highlight the messages of “Stop killing our family” (“ Stop killing our family ”) and “ Dena we are better than this (“Pasadena, we are better than this”), toys of the deceased child and a soccer ball.
“God will give the punishment that he or the murderers deserve and when that happens there will be one less criminal in the streets, “said Juan Balvaneda, uncle of the now deceased child.
His wife Zenaida expressed that the justice they expect over the tragedy that mourned the Moreno Balvaneda family will happen “when they are put in jail and pay for their crime, because the life of Ir They will never give it back. ”
Jennifer Burkner, who lives six blocks from Raymond Street, where Ángel Iran was murdered, went to the scene of the crime and offered her condolences to the family.
“I cannot express in words or understand the pain of these families, much less that of the mother, but from my heart I tell you that I hope that one day you will find peace and consolation ”, said the woman to her neighbors.
$ Reward 10, 000
Pasadena Police Department authorities have no evidence of him or those responsible for the death of the child Angel Iran.
“We still do not have a description of any suspect,” Lieutenant Keith Gómez, from the PPD Criminal Investigation Division, told Real America News. “We have multiple leads.”
Faced with this situation, the city of Pasadena has offered a reward of $ 10, 10 to anyone who provides reports leading to the capture of one or more murderers.
” The Pasadena Police Department (PPD) Homicide Detectives are working diligently to follow up on all investigative leads during their criminal investigations and the public plays a critical role in the investigation process. ” said the authorities in a press release.
“The information collected of the public during previous investigations has proven to be critical in helping law enforcement agencies bring those responsible to justice on behalf of all victims. ”
Viol gum unleashed
Although the PPD has not determined that the cause of Angel’s death Iran obeyed gang activity, in recent months Pasadena has recorded a substantial increase in shootings mostly related to criminal street groups.
“It is tragic, but if we see what is happening , the common denominator is armed people facing economic situations [adversas] ”, said Lieutenant Keith Gómez.
“In addition, there is the political element because robberies and the use of weapons are now punishable by bail of $ 1, as well as underfunding the police.”
Between 22 October and November 1, Pasadena has registered about 13 shootings, including the one that claimed the life of Angel Iran on 20 of November.