A day before he was shot to death across the street from Santee Elementary School in San Jose, the 19-year-old told his mother that he got into a fight with someone who threatened him with these words: "I'm gonna get you."
That's what Israel Hernandez told NBC Bay Area on Thursday, hours after he identified the city's 20th homicide victim as his nephew, Felipe Banderas, a commercial cleaner, who had recently moved to San Jose.
Police were not immediately available to corroborate Hernandez's account, but the uncle said that the teen's mother told him that her son was threatened on Wednesday by another man after her son had some sort of fight.
At first police said it appeared as though the teen had been a victim of random violence, an innocent bystander killed on his way to work. Hernandez's version of event changes that theory.
Police said discovered Bandares' body after people called 911 about 5:20 a.m. to say they heard gunshots in the 1300 block of Dubert Lane. When police got to the corner of Audubon and Santee drives, they found the body on the sidewalk across the street from the school. The principal decided to close Santee Elementary for the remainder of the day.
Hernandez quickly feared the body might have belonged to his nephew. He typically picks up his nephew at the corner so they can go to work together. His nephew wasn't there this morning, and wasn't answering his cell phone. Hernandez said his nephew was not a trouble maker and was not part of a gang.
Police said it was just one of four unrelated shootings reported overnight.
"It's been a very violent week, capped by tonight," Lt. Mike Sullivan said. "The dead body is right across the street, right in the open and it just wouldn’t be good for kids to see that, so I believe the principal made an excellent call on his or her own to cancel school for the day.
Parents such as a mother named Margarita had to turn back and figure out what to do with their children. In Spanish, she told NBC Bay Area that it's unfortunate that education has to suffer when a tragedy like this occurs.
Local
Police have no motive and no suspects at this time.
The man's death follows two separate homicide investigations on Sunday, where a total of three people were killed.
MORE: Friends Remember San Jose Teen Homicide Victims
Christian Comilang, 15, and Johnson Cunlar, 14, both students at Independence High School, were killed about 6:30 ap.m. Sunday along Rhinehart Drive and Clogstone court near Kohl's Department store.
About 10 p.m., Sunday, the city's 19th homicide victim, Justin Watkins, was killed in the 100 block of Hayes Avenue.
Last year, there were 16 homicides at the same time.
