Quarrel ‘a tragedy’

Playground fights often end with tears, busted lips, even black eyes. But an argument between two parents at Martin Luther King Park ended with a 33-year-old man gunned down in front of his son and daughter Saturday night.

Faustino Sigala's family said he was killed after he argued with a woman who mistakenly thought Sigala pushed her son off a swing.

During the argument, a man thought to be a friend of the mother pulled out a gun and shot Sigala several times.

Sigala, a father of three, died in the park in the arms of his elder brother, relatives said.

"It's a tragedy, him getting killed over a misunderstanding," said Javier Vasquez, a friend who worked with Sigala for nine years at a Las Vegas Valley tree trimming company.

Sigala family members had gone to the park, in the 5300 block of Carey Avenue near Nellis Boulevard, about 7 p.m. to celebrate the 35th birthday of the victim's brother, Jose Luis Sigala.

About 9:45 p.m., Faustino Sigala was pushing his 9-year-old son and 5-year-old daughter on the park's swing set when a boy who also was playing on the swings fell down, Jose Luis Sigala said.

A woman thought to be the boy's mother then accused Faustino Sigala of hurting her son. She screamed at him, and he yelled back.

"He said, 'I didn't touch him!'" Jose Luis Sigala said.

Her screaming attracted the attention of several men who were nearby. One of the men pulled out a handgun, and Faustino Sigala ran, relatives said.

As he was running, the gunman fired and hit him in the leg. Faustino Sigala got up and tried to continue running away but was shot multiple times, his brother said.

Although there were not a lot of people in the park at that hour, there were children nearby who could have been hit by the gunfire, Jose Luis Sigala said.

"He (the shooter) didn't care. He just shot and shot," he said.

Faustino Sigala's friends and co-workers mourned for him on Monday afternoon at the family's house, about 11/2 miles from the park.

Originally from Chihuahua, Mexico, Faustino Sigala had lived in the United States for 14 years. Many of his eight siblings still live in Mexico and are trying to make arrangements to come to Las Vegas to attend his funeral this weekend, relatives said.

"There were nine. Now there are only eight," said Jorge Sigala, the victim's nephew.

As of Monday night, police had not announced any arrests in the case.

Police said the woman with whom Faustino Sigala had argued is black and has blond hair. The man who shot Faustino Sigala is black and was wearing dark clothing, but that was the extent of the description that police had as of Monday evening.

Saturday's slaying was the second homicide associated with the park this year. On July 31, a passer-by found a dead man at the park. Police at the time said the man had suffered from blunt force trauma to his head.

The shooting shook parents who frequent the park with their children.

At Martin Luther King Park on Monday, Kevin Hoppe said he often brings his 5-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter there because he lives two blocks away. After learning about the shooting, he said he would think twice before returning.

"Oh yeah, I want to bring them out here now," Hoppe said sarcastically.

Contact reporter David Kihara at dkihara@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-4638.