2014-07-30 Erives

Local murder case closes after nearly two decades

Betty Trevino, 17, was fatally shot by her former boyfriend, Oscar Gomez Erives, on September 17, 1995, in Amarillo, Texas. Erives evaded capture for nearly 19 years before being arrested in Mexico, where he died by suicide in custody. The case was subsequently dismissed.

Background

Erives and Trevino had been in a relationship prior to the killing. According to investigators, Trevino had told her mother a week before her death that she feared for her life because of Erives.

Incident

In the early morning hours of September 17, 1995, Erives, along with his 14-year-old son and another man, went to Trevino's home on the 600 block of N. Pierce Street. They had come to talk her into going to Mexico with them, but she refused.

According to 47th District Attorney Randall Sims, Erives got his son to go to the door to get Betty to come outside. When she went outside, her mother also came out.^[1]

"It was an ongoing fight about going to Mexico, and he grabbed Betty around the neck and told her mom she had to beg for Betty's life or he was going to kill her," Sims explained. "And so she got on her knees and begged for Betty's life, and he killed her anyways."

Erives reportedly shot Trevino repeatedly, killing her in front of her mother.^[2]

Investigation and Arrests

Following the murder, Erives' 14-year-old son was arrested shortly after the incident but was released without charge. Another man who was with Erives and his son at the time of the shooting, Victor Manuel Vargas, was charged with Trevino's death a year after her murder. However, the case against Vargas was dismissed in 1997.

Both local and federal authorities continued searching for Erives. Sims said authorities were close to catching Erives over the last couple of years before his eventual capture. On July 22, 2014, Mexican authorities arrested Erives, 53, in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, on drug charges. During the arrest, they discovered he also had an outstanding warrant for Trevino's murder.

Death in Custody

On the evening of his arrest, Erives died by suicide while in custody at a jail in Ciudad Juárez. Mexican police said he hanged himself with his own clothes in his jail cell. He was found dead later that same day.

Sims informed Trevino's family about Erives' death on Monday. "They would like to have seen him again face to face and see him meet justice," Sims said. "But, I did tell her there is some good knowing he appealed it to the highest authority."

Case Closure

Because the defendant was deceased, the case was closed and a dismissal was granted as there was no longer a living defendant. Sims said the resolution brought some closure to Trevino's mother, though it wasn't the justice the DA's office had sought.

"It has now been two months short of 19 years," Sims noted.

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