EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — An El Paso family is pleading for answers after a 19-year-old man was found dead near a canal in Lower Valley on Tuesday morning.
El Paso police responded just before 8 a.m. on Tuesday to an unknown problem call in Green Valley near a canal in the Lower Valley.
When officers arrived, they found Rogelio Guillermo Suarez dead at the scene.
Detectives with the El Paso Police Department’s Crimes Against Persons Unit are investigating the case as a suspicious death.
Suarez’s grandmother, Jacqueline Reyes, described him as “a good boy” and said he was “a young boy, like any other kid. Happy. Cheerful.”
She said Suarez was a constant source of support for her.
“If I was sick, he was the one who would always stay with me. If I came home late from work and fell asleep in the car, he would help me inside,” she said.
She also recalled the plans he talked about for the future. “He would always tell me, ‘Mom, we’re going to buy a beautiful two-story house with a porch in the front,’” Reyes said.
The family said Suarez had left to go to the store but never returned.
Destiny Venecia El Paso family seeks answers after 19-year-old found dead near canal (Credit: KFOX14)
RELATED: El Paso police probe suspicious death of 19-year-old found near Green Valley canal
Relatives said he had no known trouble with the law, no reported drug use, and was living a normal life with his girlfriend and family.
His grandmother said she became alarmed when detectives came to the family’s home.
“They rang the doorbell. I opened the door and saw about twelve detectives. When I saw them, my heart started pounding,” Reyes said.
The family said they have received little information about what happened. Suarez’s grandmother said, “They only said something about gunshots, but we don’t know where. The investigators don’t tell us anything. We’ve received absolutely no information.”
As they wait for answers, she urged anyone with information to come forward. “If anyone knows something, anything, please tell the authorities. I don’t wish evil on that person. I just want justice. Today it’s my family suffering. Tomorrow it could be someone else’s,” Reyes said.
Authorities are asking anyone with information to contact the El Paso Police Department or Crime Stoppers of El Paso.
Tips can be submitted online at cselpaso.org, and callers can remain anonymous.
RELATED: El Paso police investigate suspicious death after body found in Lower Valley canal
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