New park to be named after 11-year-old Josue Flores, who was stabbed to death in 2016 in N. Houston
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A new park will be named in the Houston area after 11-year-old Josue Flores, who was killed in 2016 while walking home from school.
The park will bear Josue's name as it will be called the Josue Flores Memorial Park and will be dedicated on Saturday, Nov. 5, by Commissioner Adrian Garcia.
It will have STEM elements: science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It will represent the love of science that Josue was said to have had.
ORIGINAL REPORT: Police: 11-year-old boy fatally stabbed in north Houston
On May 17, 2016, at around 4:45 p.m., investigators said that Josue was walking home from a science party at Marshall Middle School in north Houston when he was stabbed at least 20 times.
A resident in the area, Richard Guerra, recalled hearing the 11-year-old scream.
Guerra said he heard the child say, "Please, please take everything. Don't kill me, please."
Guerra said he saw a man grab Josue's jacket and run down the street with it. Guerra flagged drivers to help and chase the suspect, but they got away.
Three weeks later, HPD arrested Andre Jackson, a former Marine, after arresting one man who was released after his alibi checked out, according to police.
Jackson maintained his innocence.
In 2019, the Houston Police's Cold Case Unit looked at the case again. A team re-tested evidence on a green jacket that was tested a year prior. DNA results came back inconclusive, which caused charges to be dropped against Jackson in June 2017.
A timeline of Josue Flores' murder case
On June 18, 2019, Jackson was charged with murder for a second time after new physical evidence was revealed.
In May 2022, five years later, Jackson was found guilty of stabbing Flores and was sentenced to life in prison.
The park will have STEM elements, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It will represent the love of science that Josue was said to have had.
It will be located near the Leonel Community Center on South Street.
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