Two men are in custody, charged with the death of a man killed during a used car test drive last month, Arlington Police say.
Police said the victim, 55-year-old Khudhair Hamdan, was helping relatives show a purple Dodge Charger to potential buyers who arranged to see the car on Facebook Marketplace.
Citing surveillance video and witness accounts, police said two young men arrived at Hamdan's home for the test drive on the night of March 21 and that he joined them on the ride. Police said they believe that while on Port Richmond Way, one of the two men apparently shot Hamdan who then got out of the vehicle and collapsed.
Hamdan, police said, died at the scene.
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The two men apparently then drove less than a mile away and ditched the car behind a shopping center at Matlock and Sublett roads, that's where detectives with the Arlington Police said surveillance video showed the two men walking away from the vehicle.
Arlington Police said Monday that homicide detectives were able to identify and arrest two suspects, 18-year-old Luis Gutierrez and 19-year-old Cristian Saucedo, both of Dallas.
“Mr. Hamdan was simply trying to help a relative sell a car – and now his family’s entire world has been turned upside down,” said Chief of Police Al Jones. “Violent offenders like these, who are willing to kill a man for a vehicle they abandoned a few minutes later, have no place on our streets. I’d like to thank our Homicide Unit for the dedication and effort they put into this investigation. I hope these arrests provide some sense of relief to Mr. Hamdan’s family and to the Arlington community.”
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According to an arrest warrant affidavit obtained by NBC 5, the victim's son said they were contacted by Facebook user "Armando Gutierrez" about seeing the Charger. Hamdan agreed to show the vehicle and asked the buyer to notify him when he was outside of his residence. The victim's son said in addition to speaking to the buyer through Facebook Marketplace they also exchanged phone numbers and that they talked on the phone.
Police said surveillance video recorded in the area showed two men inspecting the vehicle, driving off with the victim, abandoning the vehicle and being picked up by someone in a black Dodge Challenger equipped with chrome wheels and a hood-scoop/vent on the hood.
Investigators said data tied to the phone number provided showed it in the area where the test drive occurred and then along Port Richmond Way. The next update showed it along Matlock Road where the vehicle was abandoned. Most of the data, police said, was tied to a Dallas address which helped police identify where Luis Gutierrez lived.
Police conducting surveillance on Luis Gutierrez's suspected residence on April 5 spotted the black Dodge Challenger with chrome wheels parked outside the home and obtained a search warrant. Police said Gutierrez left a short time later and that he was taken into custody during a traffic stop after it was confirmed that the car had been stolen. During that traffic stop, police said three guns were thrown out the window by the occupants and that Luis Gutierrez, who was driving, and his brother Armando Gutierrez were both arrested. A third person who was in the car escaped on foot.
Luis Gutierrez is currently being held at the Dallas County Jail on bonds totaling $1.11 million, including a $1 million bond for the capital murder charge in Arlington and $100,000 for unlawful use of a motor vehicle. It's not clear if Luis Gutierrez has obtained an attorney. Police have not yet announced any charges against Armando Gutierrez.
Police said subsequent interviews with two other people helped identify Cristian Saucedo as the other person in surveillance photos with Luis Gutierrez and also as the person who escaped from the Dallas traffic stop on April 5.
Members of the U.S. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force located Cristian Saucedo at his home in Dallas and took him into custody without incident on April 7. He was booked into the Arlington City Jail and police said he has been transferred to the Tarrant County Jail. A bond amount for Saucedo has not been posted and it's not clear if he's obtained an attorney.
Adults convicted of capital murder in Texas face either life in prison without parole or the death penalty.
