Francisco Mares was a 28-year-old barber in Las Vegas, Nevada, known to some as Paco. On the afternoon of July 31, 2021, officers found his car had struck a wall in the 1600 block of East Lane near Rancho and Vegas drives; Francisco was unresponsive in the driver’s seat and later died. The Clark County coroner’s office ruled his death a homicide after determining a gunshot wound, not the crash, was the primary cause of death.

Investigators concluded Francisco was shot while driving, which caused him to lose control and crash. Surveillance from a nearby church showed a man matching a suspect’s description walking away from the area. In early August 2021 police arrested 27-year-old Brian Diego Terrazas, a friend of Francisco’s. Terrazas told investigators Francisco had picked him up, that he was sick from withdrawals, that he held a gun to Francisco’s head and demanded he drive, and that he fled the scene after the shooting, disposing of the gun and clothing in a storm drain.

Anyone who knew Francisco or has information about what happened that afternoon is asked to come forward.