Puerto Rico’s Justice Department secretary, Lourdes L. Gómez Torres, announced that Elvin William Reyes Rosa, 16, will be prosecuted as an adult for the killing of his grandmother, Lourdes Pérez Mercado, and the attempted murder of his brother, Jonathan Jeremy Cabrera Rosa. The attack occurred at the Santa María Shopping Center in Guaynabo. The Bayamón District Attorney’s Office filed three charges against Reyes Rosa after an investigation found he repeatedly attacked his grandmother and brother with a knife.
Pérez Mercado died from her wounds, while her grandson was seriously injured. Prosecutor Glorimar García Ríos charged first-degree murder and attempted murder under Articles 93 and 36 of Puerto Rico’s Penal Code, plus a weapons charge under Article 6.06 of Puerto Rico’s Weapons Law for using a knife. Judge Nadja G. Banuchi Ramos of the Bayamón Court of First Instance found probable cause for arrest on all charges and set bail at $225,000.
Reyes Rosa did not post bail and was jailed. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for October 8. The minor remains in police custody.