Staff
The El Paso Journal
Thursday, March 16, 2023 | 21:23
Step.- A 16-year-old teenager, who died in mid-February in the Far East of El Paso, would have been murdered because she tried to steal marijuana from a “dealer”, according to the affidavit -affidavit- of the arrest by the El Police Paso (EPPD), held by El Diario de El Paso.
The detainee César Roa, 23, would have shot Jasmine Estrella Adame in the back of the head, after the failed drug transaction.
The events occurred on February 16 in the 14300 block of Coyote Trail, where Adame was with a group of friends.
The affidavit states that a police informant told the detectives that Jasmine Estrella had contacted Roa through an intermediary on the Instagram social network, but that the teenager intended to steal the drug.
The name of the intermediary is withheld to avoid retaliation, EPPD said.
Through Instagram records, investigators confirmed that the intermediary was communicating with Adame and Roa on the night of the shooting. For this they have screenshots of the conversations between the intermediary and the “dealer”.
The screenshots showed photos of Roa’s location on the night of the murder, as well as information for the social media apps Telegram and Instagram, according to the document.
The affidavit states that Roa previously sold illicit drugs to an undercover police officer and investigators were able to identify his vehicle through police databases.
The document said Roa’s description matched that of the shooter described in testimony on the night of the murder.
Roa also sent police to cover his location via a screenshot message, according to the document. All of this led to Roa’s arrest on March 2.
During the execution of the search warrant, investigators found a black 9 mm pistol. A single unfired projectile was found, corresponding to the same brand, caliber and color as the casing found at the crime scene.
