Anival Ortiz, 77, was on the Harrisburg Hike and Bike Trail when he was stabbed. He was able to finish biking to work to get help, but died.
Vanessa Escobar told ABC13 her great uncle could be a bit of an introvert, but that when you could get a smile out of him, it would light up the room. Now she and her family have a lot of questions, many of which she fears will never be answered.
"There are many of us here in Houston. We're a big family, so it really has been a collective grief," Escobar said.
Escobar said she was checking in on family when the news started to roll in. Her great-uncle had been attacked on his way into work and was dead.
"As a family, we are very upset at the individual (who) committed this crime, but also a lot of us practice a very traditional Christian practice of forgiving others," Escobar said.
Houston police have accused 40-year-old Aaron Sheehan of randomly stabbing Ortiz.
According to records, Sheehan has a lengthy criminal history, many of those crimes happening out of state. It's noted in court documents that Sheehan has faced 17 previous charges, including seven felonies.
In 2024, Sheehan was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, but records show the Harris County District Attorney cut a deal with him, and he was allowed to plead guilty to a lesser charge of theft. He served a few months, was released, and just months later, he is accused of killing Ortiz.
"It's difficult to not be upset, not only at an individual, but also the systems that are surrounding all of this," Escobar said.
ABC13 reached out to the DA's office, which sent the following statement:
"When it comes to making decisions about how we prosecute cases, public safety and the law are always paramount. Cases are resolved by plea bargain for a variety of reasons. These include an evaluation as to whether the elements of an offense can be proven, and the ability to make contact with the victim after charges have been accepted."
"I am somebody who strongly believes we live in a society that functions within systems that sometimes does not hold individuals accountable to their wrongdoings," Escobar said.
Now, Escobar said her family is trying to get her great uncle's body back to his home county of Honduras, where his wife and sister still live. They are fighting to get their uncle the justice he deserves while tackling the financial and logistical burdens of getting him home.
"That was something that was undisputable right off the bat; collectively, we agreed his body needed to be sent back," Escobar said.
On Wednesday, Sheehan was in a mental health unit of the jail. He was scheduled to be in court on Thursday, but did not appear.
Escobar said, meanwhile, her great-uncle's son has not been able to say goodbye to his father. She said two days before Ortiz died, his son was detained at an immigration court hearing, only adding to the family's grief.
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