The family of an innocent Hartford man who was killed in a drive-by shooting shared their thoughts after police arrested a man investigators believe is responsible.
The family of 59-year-old Guillermo Gonzalez is finally seeing a sense of justice.
Hartford Police arrested 23-year-old Jose Estrada Wednesday after a drive-by shooting in May that killed Gonzalez, who was an innocent bystander. His wife, Zenaida Figueroa, speaking in her native Spanish, was elated.
“I am happy that we got justice. He’s being held to account. He’s going to jail where he can’t hurt anybody else,” she said.
Get top local stories in Connecticut delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC Connecticut's News Headlines newsletter.
Ely Aldana, Gonzalez’s step-granddaughter, said the news traveled fast.
“Walked in through the door she was crying. She started screaming. She called me at work and everything,” she said.
Police arrested Estrada just a few buildings down from Zion Street where the deadly shooting happened. Aldana said she’s relieved her grandmother can have peace of mind in her neighborhood.
Local
“Happy my grandmother gets to sleep at night now. She gets to walk outside calm. She doesn’t have to keep looking over her shoulder,” she said.
Figueroa said while this is a major step forward, an arrest doesn’t bring her husband back.
She has this message for the man arrested:
“If you’re man enough to sit here and shoot my husband for no reason, why didn’t you go face-to-face with the person who (you) wanted to kill?” Figueroa asked.
Estrada is being held on a $2 million bond and faces charges including murder and multiple counts of attempted murder.