HOUSTON – The Houston community came together Friday morning to honor a Harris County deputy whose life was taken in a senseless act of violence last week.
On July 10, 28-year-old Fernando Esqueda was undercover, trailing a man accused of pistol-whipping a Little Caesars pizza employee because they got the order wrong.
You can watch the full funeral here:
Investigators believed the suspect, 44-year-old Ronnie Palmer, began firing a gun into the car Deputy Esqueda was driving. He was rushed to LBJ Hospital in a private vehicle, but he died shortly after.
Deputy Esqueda had been with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office for five years, serving in the HCSO Violent Persons Warrant Task Force. He was engaged to be married in September.
Palmer and 26-year-old Dremone Francis have both been charged with capital murder for their roles in the deputy’s murder.
A viewing was held Thursday night from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Houston’s Second Ward. Members of the community paid their respects to Deputy Esqueda and his family.
A funeral mass for Deputy Esqueda was held Friday at 10 a.m. at Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, located at 1111 St. Joseph Pkwy, Houston TX 77002.