Julian Diego Zepeda

The day after Julian Diego Zepeda graduated from Tucson High School, his life was tragically taken. The 18-year-old Hispanic man had received his diploma on the evening of May 23, 2019. His older sister, Nicole Chavez, couldn't attend the ceremony but sent him a text: “Congratulations brother, you did it and I’m so proud of you. I love you and be safe.” Julian texted back, “thank you sister, I love you, too.” It was the last time they would communicate.

Around 10 a.m. the next morning, Friday, May 24, Tucson police responded to what appeared to be a single-vehicle crash in the 5500 block of South Forgeus Avenue. When they arrived, they found Julian inside the wrecked car, suffering not from crash injuries but from obvious gunshot trauma. Witnesses reported hearing a single shot just before the crash and seeing a male run from the vehicle into the nearby Las Villas De Kino apartment complex. Emergency crews rushed Julian to Banner University Medical Center, but he succumbed to his wound later that evening.

The investigation began immediately. Officers searched the apartment complex where the male was last seen and located a juvenile who matched the suspect's description. He was initially arrested on an outstanding warrant. As detectives looked into the circumstances of the shooting, they learned that one of the individuals involved was a documented gang member, which led the Tucson Police Department's Gang Unit to join the homicide investigation.

Further investigation identified the suspect as 14-year-old Rene M. Yanez. According to court documents, a witness saw Yanez running into an upstairs unit of the apartment complex, where police later arrested him. He was subsequently indicted on a charge of first-degree murder in the death of Julian Zepeda.

The case concluded on March 4, 2020, when Rene M. Yanez pleaded guilty to a charge of second-degree murder in connection with Julian's shooting death.