‘They don’t care about this neighborhood’: Coroner ID’s teen killed walking home from party

The shooting that took place next door to Orlando Hernandez’s home Sunday evening wasn’t out of the ordinary. Gun violence is a fact of life for those living on his block in east Las Vegas.

While his daughter Naioby Hernandez was at a friend’s 11th birthday party next door, Hernandez was hesitant to let her stay a bit longer while he bought ice cream nearby. Despite the 11-year-old Findlay Middle School student’s desire to remain at the party, he was quick to call her home with a whistle.

Orlando Hernandez’s paternal instincts served him well. Shortly after his daughter returned home, he heard gunshots and saw emergency personnel attempt to resuscitate someone on the ground. Luis Garcia-Molina, 17, had been shot and killed — a fact confirmed by the Clark County coroner’s office Tuesday.

In Hernandez’s view, the only time neighbors see police officers or local officials is after a tragedy.

“They don’t care about this neighborhood,” said Hernandez, who said shootings have happened frequently on the block he’s lived on since March 2022.

The family of the teen who was killed remembers him as their “angelito,” or little angel.

“He was a child who was just beginning to live and had many dreams to achieve,” Garcia-Molina’s cousin, Lesly Molina, wrote in Spanish in a GoFundMe in his honor. “At his young age he won our hearts with his charisma and witticisms.”

As of Thursday morning, the campaign had raised just under $1,000 for a future funeral, which has yet to be set.

Police chase to Henderson

According to a Metropolitan Police Department arrest report, police received a 911 call from a person who said his brother was shot near 4768 Corsaire Ave. in Las Vegas. Officers found Garcia-Molina on the ground with what appeared to be several gunshot wounds, the report said.

Police attempted to stop a Chevrolet Silverado that had fled the area, the report said. Officers pursued the truck to Henderson and arrested six males. The identities of all but Damian Delgado, 18, are redacted in the report the court released.

Delgado, who appeared before North Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Jonathan Cooper on Tuesday, faces counts of open murder, conspiring to commit murder, failing to stop for an officer and destroying or concealing evidence.

Court administrator Stormi Decker said the shooting occurred in North Las Vegas.

Witnesses described the shooter as a bald man wearing a blue sweater and jeans and said his nickname was “Silenciodap,” according to Metro. Investigators found 17 cartridge casings at the scene, according to the report.

“A law enforcement records search developed ‘Silencio’ as possibly Damian Delgado,” police said.

The report indicates that a witness said Delgado and other men showed up at the party to drop off a barbecue grill. Another witness told Metro she saw a bald man in a blue sweater shoot at Garcia-Molina as he ran.

Delgado’s next court date is scheduled for Thursday.

Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.