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Denis Gutierrez-Marcos, age 20, pleaded guilty to murder and related charges in Nassau County Court on Thursday, Feb. 9, in the death of Edwin Guerrero Hernandez.
Prosecutors said Gutierrez-Marcos was riding in a taxi minivan with two other passengers near High Street in Hempstead on Sept. 6, 2020. An argument broke out between a passenger in the front seat and another man in the rear.
When the passenger in the rear got out of the vehicle, he continued to yell at the man in the front. That’s when prosecutors said Gutierrez-Marcos, who was seated behind the driver, leaned forward and shot the man through the open window. He then told the taxi driver to leave the area.
The victim suffered a gunshot wound to his left shoulder and fell backwards.
Investigators said Hernandez, a friend of the victim, witnessed the shooting and chased after the taxi. When he attempted to open the vehicle’s door, Gutierrez-Marcos again fired through the open window, striking Hernandez.
Hernandez was later pronounced dead at Nassau University Medical Center.
According to prosecutors, Gutierrez-Marcos was involved in a second shooting in October 2020 in which he fired into a group of people standing outside a home on Jackson Street while seated in a moving car. Two people were hit, including one person who suffered life-threatening injuries. Both victims survived the attack.
He fled the scene and was on the run until June 2021, when he was finally arrested by the Nassau County Police Department Gang Squad.
“Denis Gutierrez-Marcos, an alleged MS-13 gang member, showed complete disregard for human life when he shot four men in two separate incidents in September and October 2020,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a statement.
“The defendant took one man’s life and injured three others because the victims allegedly disrespected MS-13. We are working around the clock with our law enforcement partners to neutralize this gang, which has terrorized our communities through fear and intimidation.”
In court Thursday, Gutierrez-Marcos pleaded guilty to the following charges:
- Murder - 2nd degree (felony)
- Attempted Murder - 2nd degree (felony)
- Criminal Possession of a Weapon - 2nd degree (felony)
He is expected to get 20 years in prison when he’s sentenced on Thursday, March 23.
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