Daniel Perez, 25, was shot in the head while sitting in his pickup truck with his younger brother in a Kennesaw, Georgia parking lot on the evening of Friday, March 23, 2018. The location was a business complex in the 3400 block of Old 41 Highway, across from North Cobb High School, his alma mater. Perez was taken to a local hospital, declared brain dead, remained on life support, and died on Monday, March 26, 2018. He was a father to three young children.

Investigators say the killing began as a planned robbery. Devin Thomas allegedly arranged a meeting under the pretense of buying marijuana; surveillance showed Thomas approach Perez’s truck while Gustavo Hernandez-Ortiz waited hidden behind another vehicle with a handgun. After a brief exchange, Hernandez-Ortiz ran out and fired one shot into the back of Perez’s head. Thomas and Hernandez-Ortiz then fled to a waiting getaway car with Brittani Hernandez, Charlton Kariuki, and Maria Mungai. Testimony reportedly indicated the shooting was not part of the original plan and that Kariuki obtained the gun and ammunition used.

All five were arrested and faced charges; Hernandez-Ortiz was convicted of murder and multiple related offenses, while the four others pleaded guilty.