Samantha Vergara remembers Justin Aleman’s words of condolence the day her father, Angel Aleman, was shot and killed with his girlfriend and their dog two years ago at a parking lot near Mackenzie Park.
She said her cousin asked her if the police knew who the killer was so he could stay “updated.”
In reality, those words of comfort came from the same man who gunned down her father in cold blood.
“That level of deception and betrayal is something I will never forgive and never forget,” Vergara wrote in a statement read aloud in the 34th District Court by prosecutor Courtney Boyd.
Justin Aleman, 27, was sentenced earlier this month to 50 years in prison for his role in the September 2024 shooting deaths of 55-year-old Angel Aleman, 47-year-old Lydia Hernandez and their dog, “Monster.”
Aleman, who has been held at the Lubbock County Detention Center since his Sept. 14, 2024 arrest, pleaded guilty to two counts of murder and a count of animal cruelty.
Murder carries a punishment of five years to life in prison, however, as part of a plea deal with the Lubbock County District Attorney’s Office, Aleman was sentenced to two, 50-year prison sentences that will run concurrently.
He was also sentenced to the maximum punishment of 10 years in prison for the animal cruelty charge, which will also run concurrently.
Aleman will have to serve half of his sentence before he is eligible for parole.
Investigating a deadly shooting at a north Lubbock park
Aleman was one of two people charged in the homicide case. His brother, 24-year-old Joziah Aleman, is being held at the jail on pending counts of murder and animal cruelty.
Their charges stem from a Lubbock Metropolitan Special Crimes Unit investigation that began after Lubbock police officers responded to a shots-fired call about 8:40 a.m. in the 300 block of Cesar E. Chaves Drive in Mackenzie Park.
Responding officers found Angel Aleman, Hernandez and their dog, suffering gunshot wounds.
Aleman and the dog were pronounced dead at the scene. Hernandez was taken by ambulance to University Medical Center where she died.
Witnesses at the scene told investigators that two vehicles – a white SUV and a gray SUV – left the scene immediately after the shooting, according to an arrest affidavit.
Investigators also obtained video from nearby security cameras that caught the shooting.
The video appears to show Hernandez and Aleman arriving in a vehicle and walking around.
Moments later, a gray SUV arrived from the west and drove toward the couple’s vehicle, stopping suddenly next to it.
The video shows two people approaching Aleman and Hernandez. During the encounter, one person is seen falling to the ground. A second person is seen running toward the first person before also falling to the ground.
Meanwhile, the other subjects in the video can be seen fleeing the scene in separate vehicles.
The white SUV could be seen leaving the scene toward I-27 and the gray SUV speeds away westbound, according to the document.
Investigators collected two weapons of the same caliber at the scene. Investigators believe they were used in the shooting, the affidavit states.
An anonymous caller reportedly left a tip for investigators identifying Justin Aleman as the shooter.
Investigators learned that Justin Aleman drove a white Chevrolet Traverse, which police found at his home.
Meanwhile, investigators learned that Joziah Aleman drove a gray Hyundai Santa Fe.
Investigators spoke with the brothers separately.
Justin Aleman reportedly confirmed that his vehicle was the same white SUV seen in the security camera video. He also reportedly admitted to being at the scene during the shooting, the affidavit states.
However, the interview concluded after he asked for an attorney.
Meanwhile, Josiah Aleman told investors that he drove to the park after his brother called him. He said he arrived prepared to fight their uncle, Angel.
However, the warrant does not disclose the dispute between the brothers and their uncle.
During the interview, Joziah reportedly made statements indicating that his brother shot their uncle, Hernandez and their dog. His interview with detectives also ended after he asked for an attorney.
Investigators also obtained a statement from a witness who was not identified in the affidavit, who said Justin Aleman admitted to shooting his uncle and Hernandez.
Justin Aleman held his head low as he sat in the courtroom listening to the words of his family members express the pain they’ve held onto the last two years.
Vergara said her father suffered multiple gunshot wounds in the face that required reconstruction for his funeral.
A bullet also shot through the middle of his hand, casting in her mind visions of him begging for his life.
“No child should ever have to see their parent like that,” she wrote. “That image will stay with me for the rest of my life.”
She told Aleman that she still struggles with the grief his actions caused.
“I spent days, weeks, months, and years crying myself to sleep, waking up crying, and crying throughout the day,” she wrote.
Vergara told Aleman that she will be at every parole hearing to make sure he serves every second of his sentence.
“I will be there every time you come up for parole to speak for my father and Lydia, because they no longer have a voice,” she wrote. “I will continue to advocate for him for the rest of my life. And I will make sure you do not make parole. I will never stop.”
Sylvia Aleman, Angel’s elder sister, told Justin Aleman that she, too, was haunted by thoughts about her brother’s final moments.
“The fact that he faced those moments alone, without anyone there to comfort him, is something I will bever be able to accept or move past,” she said.
She said she still struggles with unanswered questions about Angel’s death.
“All because of your own ego and whatever point you were trying to prove,” she said. “… That kind of pain does not fade. It becomes who you are.”
Hernandez’s son, Isiah Rivera, told Aleman he hoped he realizes the gravity of the pain and suffering he’s put two families through.
“You have taken Lydia, a loving mother, daughter, grandma, sister and aunt. Also Angel, a loving father, son, grandpa, brother and uncle,” he said. “Two families that will be missing a relative for holidays, family events, weddings, graduations. But most importantly, for warm hugs and kisses and a shoulder to cry on.”
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock family members confront killer for ‘Unforgivable betrayal’
Reporting by Gabriel Monte, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
