LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A Henderson woman and her son crossed a graduation stage together Tuesday, months after she barely escaped with her life.
Yvonne Albarado survived a hostage situation in February when Henderson police shot and killed her ex-boyfriend, who they say held her at knifepoint.
MORE ON FOX5: ‘He’s going to hurt my baby’: Video shows police shooting, hostage situation that killed child
Albarado was in the middle of her last semester of college when the incident occurred. This Tuesday, she graduated from the College of Southern Nevada with an associate’s degree in criminal justice, with her son walking across that stage right behind her.
Finishing the semester after trauma
“Every month I feel like I am getting stronger loving myself again,” Albarado said.
Albarado said she studied every day to finish the semester. She said she couldn’t miss a day.
In February, Albarado escaped from her ex-boyfriend Fabian Leon, who police say held her hostage at knifepoint. Albarado ran out the door with her ex-boyfriend still chasing her. Henderson police shot and killed him.
“When he ended up chasing me out of the house he came after me with a knife, I knew that if that knife got into me he wouldn’t have stopped — he wanted us both to die that day — and so looking back now that time has passed I think to myself I am so grateful to be alive because I would have missed so many important moments in my son’s life,” Albarado said.
Mother and son graduate together
One of those moments came Tuesday when Yvonne and her son Anthony Mangual both earned associate’s degrees in criminal justice from the College of Southern Nevada.
Anthony was also home that day in February and escaped first.
“Not too long after that I hear my mom screaming and shots fired,” Anthony said. “I heard her too — she said mijo I’m ok.”
“It was amazing to see my mom walk across the stage — but the cool part about it was that since she was able to walk first she was able to record me like a parent and was like ‘mijo I love you,’” Anthony said.
“It was a beautiful moment — I realized how thankful I was to be alive to have that opportunity. If I had been killed… I wouldn’t have been able to graduate with my son and it would have been a moment for him that he would not have been able to finish school,” Yvonne said.
Albardo said she started her degree before she met her ex-boyfriend and she wanted to finish it. She said talking about her experience helps her because someone in her situation could be watching who may not know it’s time to get out of a domestic violence relationship. She calls herself a survivor, not a victim. Her goal is to continue a law degree to help other survivors.
Copyright 2026 KVVU. All rights reserved.
