Teen’s death leaves family devastated
It couldn't happen to Nester Lee.
Not the popular 19-year-old with dozens of friends. The young man who wanted to own a business, maybe a restaurant. The perfectionist who always made his bed.
"The same thing comes out of everybody's mouth: It doesn't make sense," Lee's 23-year-old sister, Elda Lee, said.
But it happened.
And it happened at the hands of one of Nester Lee's longtime friends, those closest to the dead teen said.
Was it an accident that he was fatally shot at a party early Sunday morning?
"An accident?" said the victim's older brother by 17 months, Hugo Lee Jr., looking down and shaking his head. "At close range?"
Nester Lee, "the baby of the family," died in his older brother's arms.
Las Vegas police arrested 21-year-old Eric Sandoval on Sunday, not far from the northwest valley home where the shooting occurred. Sandoval was booked into the Clark County Detention Center and faces one charge of murder with a deadly weapon and five charges of attempted murder with a deadly weapon.
Sandoval denied shooting any gun at his friend or at five people in a nearby car, according to his arrest report.
Blood was on his clothing and his hands, police said.
When detectives told him his friend was dead, Sandoval burst into tears.
The party started Saturday night among a few friends at a home at 8332 Spring Arts Ave., near Alexander Road and Durango Drive. As the night progressed, other people arrived, witnesses told police.
About 12:30 a.m. Sunday, a fight broke out among two groups of girls. Sandoval pulled out a handgun, aimed it at someone and fired a shot, police said.
Nester Lee went down.
"My bad, my bad. What ... did I do?" one witness heard Sandoval say, according to the report.
As friends came to Nester Lee's aid and carried him to a car to be taken to the hospital, Sandoval fled, police said. Before he left, Sandoval fired several more shots into a white car occupied by individuals involved in the original dispute, according to the report.
Five people in the car were hit, including a 14-year-old. All of them are expected to live, Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Lew Roberts said.
The last time Hugo Lee Jr. saw his younger brother, he was being whisked away on a gurney into the Mountain View Hospital emergency room, where he died from the gunshot wound to his chest.
The two brothers had been close and were friends with Sandoval while attending Cimarron-Memorial High School.
Sandoval's uncle, Arnold Sandoval, did not know the details of what happened and had not talked to his nephew since he was arrested.
"He never got into trouble," Arnold Sandoval said. "As far as I know, he was a good kid."
Police said in the arrest report that the shell casings found at the scene were all .40 caliber. Eric Sandoval told police that he owned a .380-caliber handgun and that his mother owned a .45, according to the report.
A check found that Sandoval's mother owns a .40-caliber Springfield handgun, the report said.
Nester Lee's father, Hugo Lee Sr., said he knows there's no such thing as a perfect person.
But "to me, if I could find an example in life of a person being perfect in every way, I would pick him," Hugo Lee Sr. said of his dead son.
He was motivated, determined, loving and well-loved. He wanted to be the best.
"He was the greatest kid," he said.
Nester Lee had started classes in business management two weeks ago at the College of Southern Nevada, family members said. He was working toward owning a business, which he talked about all the time.
"I don't want to use my son as an example," Hugo Lee Sr. said. "But kids need to be careful out there."
He added: "I hope it doesn't happen to anyone else because it's painful."
His brother and sister both knew Sandoval.
"Right now, I just miss my brother. That's all I feel," Hugo Lee Jr. said.
A viewing for Nester Lee will be held from 1 to 7 p.m. today at Palm Mortuary, 6701 N. Jones Blvd. Funeral services will be held there at 2 p.m. Thursday.
Contact reporter Lawrence Mower at lmower@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0440.
