Drive-by shooting case on hold
The disappearance of the victim has caused problems in closing the case of a man who was wounded in a drive-by shooting July 4 at Skyline Apartments.
According to McMinnville Police Investigator Mike Vann, the victim, Edgar David Hernandez, is nowhere to be found and sources say the victim may have returned to his native Mexico.
Hernandez was shot in the leg with a high-caliber handgun on the afternoon of July 4. Investigators said Hernandez was standing in the door of the apartment’s laundromat when a gunman drove by, firing four shots at Hernandez before speeding off. Hernandez was treated for the leg wound at River Park Hospital.
Investigators have developed information that the shooting may have been motivated by revenge over a pair of stabbings, with the gunman wanting “pay back” for the incidents.
According to Vann, police think they know who committed the shooting, but they have been unable to get in touch with the victim. Without a victim to prosecute the case, Vann said, police are at a standstill.
“We haven’t been able to talk to the victim since he went to the hospital and we’ve heard he has returned to Mexico,” Vann said. “Without the victim, there’s just not much we can do.”
Vann noted the case is still technically open and if Hernandez returns from Mexico and wants to go ahead with prosecution, the case may then go forward. Until such time, Vann said the case will likely be placed in the pending file.