A man will spend 30 years in prison for shooting his lifelong friend during a shoe deal. The Bexar County District Attorney's Office shared the news on Monday, Oct. 26.
The man is Daniel Hernandez Jr., 20. He was 18 when it happened. Judge Christine Del Prado gave him the sentence. It was in the 227th District Court. The charge was murder.
The dead man is Ricky De Los Santos, 18. In April 2024, Ricky was selling a pair of tennis shoes. Prosecutors say Hernandez came to buy them. The meeting was in the 2000 block of South Loop 1604 East. Court records say Hernandez shot Ricky with an AK-47-style rifle.
Deputies got there. They talked to Ricky while he was still alive. He told them Hernandez was the shooter. Ricky died later that night.
Prosecutors say those words mattered a lot. They gave investigators key facts. Those facts led to the arrest of Hernandez.
The two were not strangers. Sheriff Javier Salazar said they had known each other since they were kids. Investigators call them best friends.
Assistant District Attorney Rebecca Gorham led the case for the state. Becky Garza and Bruce Hallonquist helped her. District Attorney Joe D. Gonzales said, "While no sentence can undo the loss of a life, this outcome holds the defendant accountable for the violence that took Ricky De Los Santos from his loved ones."
He added that the office is grateful Ricky could name his attacker.
A second case tied to this shooting is separate. It is not part of this sentence.
