GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A 20-year-old accused in a Gwinnett County teenager's murder has gang ties, authorities say. The teen's mother said she was warned about him and notified that her son was in danger -- and now she's left grieving his death.
Jose Daniel Martinez, 16, was found dead Wednesday along Paden Mill Trail near Sweet Water Park and Alford Elementary School.
His mother, Jilisia Ramirez, said she reported that her son was missing when she realized he wasn't in his room Wednesday morning. She said police then tracked his cell phone to an abandoned home on Paden Mill Trail where officers discovered his body. Police said he was shot to death.
Dennis Enrique Caldazilla-Hernandez was arrested Thursday and is now accused of felony murder and aggravated assault in Martinez's death.
Arrest warrants explain the charges Caldazilla-Hernandez is also facing two street gang charges. He’s accused of bringing Martinez to a known MS-13 gang address, where MS-13 graffiti is highly visible, and the suspect’s alias is even spray-painted on the house. The warrants also accuse him of killing Martinez to earn, maintain, or increase his status in MS-13.
"There are no words to explain this," Ramirez said tearfully.
She said when she first got the call from the police, she thought it was good news: that they found Martinez.
Instead, their news was heartbreaking.
"The police called me and told me to turn back," she said in Spanish. “I asked them if he was at the hospital and they said no. They told me he was dead, that was so hard on me."
She said this wasn't the first call she's received from police about her son -- the first one was a warning.
Ramirez said last week authorities called her to warn her about Caldazilla-Hernandez, adding that her son was in danger. She didn't know it would end like this.
“It makes me so sad to know he’s gone,” Ramirez said.
She said what makes it worse is that she knows Caldazilla-Hernandez and that he's friends with another family member. She said police questioned Martinez's relationship with the 20-year-old just last week.
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“They knew my son was in danger, they told me that themselves," she said. "I don’t know why they didn’t give him protection."
She said Martinez was a twin and that he loved soccer. His family was working hard to get him back on the right track.
“He wanted to turn towards God. He would go to church," she said. "Last week, we went to church. He seemed like he was moving away from those bad friendships.”
As Ramirez is grieving the loss of her son, Caldazilla-Hernandez is set to go before a judge Friday morning.
Gwinnett County Police are still investigating the case. Anyone who may have more information on Martinez's death is asked to call authorities.
In the meantime, in the wake of several young deaths, Gwinnett County Police are hosting a community meeting to help answer questions and gain insight. Information for next week's gathering can be found here. Spanish translation will be available.