LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — The stepfather of an 11-year-old boy killed in an alleged road rage shooting, and the suspect accused of firing the fatal shot, appeared in court nearly three weeks after the deadly incident.
The incident occurred on Nov. 14 on the 215 Southern Beltway at Gibson Road, where two vehicles were engaged in an altercation.
Investigators said two vehicles began jockeying for position on the freeway, trying to pass each other. When one of the vehicles attempted to pass the other on the shoulder of the highway, the occupants rolled down their windows, and a heated exchange ensued.
Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria, 11, was in the back of the car on his way to school when he was shot.
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The suspect, identified as Tyler Matthew Johns, 22, appeared in court handcuffed but did not testify.
Valente Ayala, the stepfather of the 11-year-old, took the stand to share insight from his perspective into the moments that led to the shooting.
“He speeds up to catch up to me, at that moment he’s trying to travel next to me, I turned around to look at him and at that moment he was already pointing a gun at me,” said Valente Ayala via a translator. “Seconds after that, I got scared, so I looked forward, and the worst thing happened, I heard the gunshot.”
He explained that after he heard gunshots, he looked over to Brandon to find blood in his passenger seat and his body on the backseat floor of the car.
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The preliminary hearing lasted at least 2 hours, during which multiple witnesses testified.
Johns is set to appear in court on Dec. 11 for his next arraignment.
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