HOUSTON — A young Navy veteran's family is desperate for answers two weeks after he was shot to death on the North Freeway.
Mauro Raphael Gauna was found covered in blood in his car on Dec. 1 around 6:30 p.m. Houston police had received calls about a car that was pulled over on the Quitman exit ramp with its hazard lights on.
Now Gauna's family is pleading with the public to offer any information they have about the incident.
"It's going to be very hard not to have him here," wife Daniella said. "It's going to be hard to find joy this holiday season.”
During a news conference with Fiel Houston, Daniella said he was driving to a market to pick up some things for dinner. She said he was driving on the North Freeway toward the I-10 exits near the Downtown Aquarium.
"We need to know what happened. We need to know who is responsible for his death," Daniella said." We will not rest until we know any little bit that will help us bring this case to a closing until we have that person in custody and answers as to why this happened."
Mauro's vehicle was a gray 2016 Ford Mustang with a Texas license plate and two stickers on the back: One "Navy Corpsman" sticker on the window and an orange UT Longhorn.
At the news conference, Mauro's parents were holding a picture of him during his deployment with the U.S. Navy. His wife said he was enlisted for five years and served in areas like Kuwait and Iraq before becoming a nurse.
"Mauro did not deserve this," said Daniella. "He made sure that we were all taken care of at all times. Not just his family, but also his country, his community. He made sure that if he ate, that we all ate at the table with him. He made sure that if someone was hurt, he was there to help in any way."
How you can help Mauro Gauna's family
The Gauna family and Fiel representatives are asking for anyone with any information to call the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600. There is no reward posted yet for any information that leads to an arrest. When it's available, it'll be posted on the "Justiceformaurogauna" Facebook page.
One Fiel representative addressed concerns that some witnesses may be scared to speak out due to their immigration status.
"We want to remind the community that if they cooperate with these types of investigations, at the end of the day, there could be benefits for them," they said.
The family has started a GoFundMe page to help pay for funeral expenses.
They're also planning to hold a vigil for Mauro on Thursday, Dec 23. Plans for the vigil will be shared on the family's Facebook page.