The Murder of Abigail Gasca-Chavez
For this case, I watched an episode of See No Evil. It’s season 10 episode 2, titled ‘I Will Follow.’
A young mother is killed in front of her son.
Background
Abigail Gasca-Chavez was a 19-year-old single mother of 2, a 4-year-old girl and 2-year-old boy. They lived together in Greenfield, California.
Abigail was very close to her family, especially her sister, Aime. Her family described her as a good and loving person. Abigail wanted to continue in school to give her children the best life she could give them.
Abigail Gasca-Chavez
The Crime
On March 29, 2016, around 12:37pm, Abigail’s neighbor heard some strange noises coming from her house. When he arrived, he found Abigail’s son, Angel, alone and hysterically crying in the backyard.
The neighbor called Abigail’s mom, who then called Aime to check on her. Aime immediately saw shell casings on the floor when she went inside the house. Aime said she took a few more steps inside, and found her sister lying on the floor. Aime saw a pool of blood around Abigail’s head, and called the Greenfield police.
It was clear to the police that Abigail was dead. She had been shot once in the forehead, and 6 more times to the right side of her head. Abigail had been shot at very close range. The police believed Abigail knew her killer, and that it was a rage killing. Nothing had been taken from the house either.
A Love Triangle
The police spoke to Abigail’s family to learn about who was in her life.
Abigail had her daughter when she was dating a man named Christian Rozzo, who Aime described as the love of Abigail’s life. The relationship ended, and Abigail moved onto a man named Ernesto Hernandez. Ernesto was also Christian’s cousin.
Ernesto gave Abigail the attention that Christian wasn’t giving her. He also had a stable job, and had money. Abigail became pregnant, and had their son, Angel.
According to Abigail’s family, Christian was unhappy with her dating Ernesto.
The Surveillance
The police canvassed the neighborhood for any surveillance cameras. They found 3 houses with cameras facing Abigail’s house.
At 12:34pm, Abigail’s car returned home. Abigail could be seen casually walking into her house with her son in tow. At 12:37pm, a man wearing a gray sweatshirt, jeans, and dark shoes ran out of the house.
The police decided to rewind the footage to earlier in the day. At 9:12am, a dark colored car arrived at Abigail’s house, and blocked her car in. Abigail walked over to the car, and according to the body language, the police believed they were arguing.
At 9:30am, the black car backs out, and followed Abigail around the neighborhood when she tried to leave. At 9:44, the black car blew through a stop sign to continue to follow Abigail’s car. At 9:50am, Abigail’s car pulled back into driveway, and the driver of the black car walked up to her car. The suspect matched the description of the man who the police believed to be her killer.
At 12:21pm, the man in the gray sweatshirt can be seen walking on foot up to Abigail’s house. He looked through a window, and walked to the back of the house.
At 12:36pm, Abigail and Angel returned to the house. Abigail hadn’t seen the black car anywhere, and had no idea that her killer was lying in wait inside. At 12:37pm, the killer ran out of the house, and had the murder weapon tucked into his waistband.
The Motive
On March 30, the day after the murder, the police interviewed Christian. He told the police that he and Abigail had broken up, but were still in contact. He revealed that they were talking about getting back together. Christian said that Ernesto was aware that he and Abigail were talking. Christian was eliminated as a suspect, as he had been at work at the time of the murder.
Next, the police spoke to Aime. Aime said that Abigail had seemed fine that day when she came to her house. However, Abigail had told her that Ernesto was stalking her. Abigail said Ernesto would just sit in front of her house, and had followed her all over Greenfield. Aime told the police that she wished she had taken her sister more seriously.
On March 31, the police subpoenaed Ernesto’s cell phone records. He was also missing, and had most likely fled. The police had also put out a BOLO (be on the lookout) for his black Volkswagen Jetta.
The police went to Ernesto’s house and spoke to his mom. Ernesto’s mom told the police that he came home on the day of the murder, but had left after a few minutes. She said she didn’t know where he went, but told the police that they had family in Mexico.
Blood is Thicker Than Water
The police were able to track Ernesto’s phone. About 3 hours after the murder, he was headed towards Los Angeles. The police knew that he had some put was going to ditch his car.
The police went to L.A., and obtained the surveillance footage from the Greyhound bus station. They learned that Ernesto had parked his car in the lot, and purchased a bus ticket to McAllen, Texas.
After Ernesto’s car wasn’t found in the parking lot, the police learned that someone had driven his car out of the lot. This was just 7 minutes after he had boarded his bus.
A red Dodge was seen following Ernesto’s Jetta. The red Dodge had backed into the spot next to the Jetta earlier, and a figure was seen getting into the black Jetta and driving out of the lot.
From Ernesto’s phone records, the police were able to determine that the person helping him was his brother, Abel Hernandez. Ernesto had also called Abel right after the murder.
Tracking a Killer
On April 4, the police obtained a search warrant for Abel’s house. Inside, they found the keys to the black Jetta, and a Texas phone number. The police knew that Ernesto’s phone had either died, or he had ditched it.
Abel was questioned by the police. At first, he claimed he had no idea what the key was for. He said someone had shown up at his work, and handed it to him. He then admitted that Ernesto drove the black Jetta.
The police traced the number found in Abel’s house. The phone number belonged to Ernesto, and he purchased the phone at a Cricket store in Texas. The phone was tracked to the border of Mexico. After Ernesto crossed into Mexico, the police lost him.
Ernesto’s car was found in Greenfield about 2-3 streets over from Abigail’s house. The car had clearly been wiped down, but the police did find .32 caliber ammunition inside. It was the same caliber of bullet that Abigail was shot with.
The police also obtained Abel’s phone records. In the photos, there was a photo of a ticket. Abel and their other brother, Rigoberto, had gotten the ticket while driving a maroon vehicle. The maroon car matched the description of the car seen in the bus station surveillance footage. Rigoberto was never charged, as the police believed he had no knowledge of the crime.
Abel Hernandez was arrested. Ernesto was eventually found in Mexico, and was taken into custody. The Mexican authorities said he would be extradited back to California.
The Convictions
On April 19, 2016, the police attempted to question Ernesto. They described him as very callous and nonchalant. He was charged with first degree murder. Ernesto cared more about how the police had found him than he did about how he had killed Abigail in front of their son.
Ernesto went on trial on December 8, 2017. It was clear that the surveillance footage helped tell the story. Ernesto had spent the day harassing and stalking Abigail. He then broke into her house, and killed her because he was jealous and angry over their break up.
Ernesto was convicted of first degree murder. He was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
Abel pled guilty to being an accessory after the fact, and was sentenced to 4 years.
Ernesto Hernandez
FINAL THOUGHTS
Ernesto is obviously the biggest piece of scum for shooting someone in front of a 2-year-old. Abigail had no idea that Ernesto was inside her house. The footage of her and Angel walking up to the house is heartbreaking. I hope Angel doesn’t remember what happened, but somehow still remembers his mom even though he was so young. My heart goes out to Abigail’s daughter too, and to the rest of her family.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/abigail-gasca-chavez-murder-where-is-ernesto-hernandez-now/
https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/id-s-see-no-evil-what-happened-abigail-gasca-chavez
https://www.ksbw.com/article/soledad-man-gets-life-in-prison/12834197
