Israel Espino

Israel Espino, a man remembered by his family as a caring, noble, and loving father, was a 42-year-old Hispanic painter living in Phoenix, Arizona. To his loved ones, he was a wonderful husband and friend. A father of three, his life was violently cut short in the fall of 2016, leaving a void in the family that cherished him.

On the night of Friday, November 4, 2016, a violent encounter unfolded in west Phoenix. Phoenix Police officers were called to the area near 67th Avenue and Van Buren Street, where they discovered two men suffering from gunshot wounds. One was Israel Espino, who was pronounced dead at the scene. The second victim was his 20-year-old nephew, Jose Sanchez Hernandez. Hernandez was seriously wounded and rushed to a local hospital for treatment; he would ultimately survive his injuries.

The initial investigation by the Phoenix Police Department suggested that as many as four individuals fled the scene following the shooting. Witnesses described them leaving in a four-door sedan. The search for those responsible began immediately as detectives processed the crime scene and interviewed witnesses, trying to piece together the events that led to one man’s death and another’s critical injury.

The investigation soon focused on a single suspect. According to a statement later given to police by Espino's wife, the shooting may have stemmed from a criminal dispute. She alleged that her husband and a man named Giovani Salgado had conspired to steal marijuana from another person. A conflict reportedly arose when Espino began demanding his share of the money from the arrangement.

A few days after the shooting, 26-year-old Giovani Salgado turned himself in to the police. He was arrested and subsequently charged with one count of first-degree murder for the death of Israel Espino and one count of attempted murder for the shooting of Jose Sanchez Hernandez. A judge set his bail at $500,000, which he eventually posted.

The case took a significant turn nearly a year later. In October 2017, authorities discovered that Salgado had fled Arizona to avoid prosecution. His time as a fugitive came to an end on Wednesday, October 18, 2017, during a traffic stop in Detroit, Michigan. Officers on the city’s west side pulled over a vehicle and noticed a passenger in the back seat who appeared extremely nervous and was attempting to hide his face. When they asked for his name, he provided an Arizona ID, identifying himself as Giovani Salgado.

A background check quickly revealed the active warrant for murder and attempted murder from Phoenix. Salgado was arrested without incident and held at the Detroit Detention Center. As of October 2017, he was awaiting extradition back to Arizona to face the charges related to the murder of Israel Espino and the attempted murder of his nephew. The case was pending his return to Maricopa County for litigation.