TULSA, Okla. — It’s a case with few leads, no suspects and little to go on. The 2003 cold case of Alejandro Sandoval is about as stalled as it comes.
Tulsa police said Alejandro Sandoval lived at the Salida Creek Apartments in east Tulsa on September 9, 2003. Officers said someone shot him outside his building and he staggered inside his apartment and collapsed.
Detectives told 2 News the Sandoval case is unusual. Investigators don’t even have a photo of him and it's a case that’s remained cold for 21 years.
“In his final moments he had gone into his apartment and told his girlfriend that there was somebody chasing him, and then he laid down on the floor and he never really regained consciousness from there,” said Lt. Brandon Watkins, “It turned out that he was shot.
Officers said nearby witnesses gave little cooperation during the initial investigation.
“There's a little bit of discrepancy when you read the reports. It's hard to tell if he ran in there once or came outside and then came back but at some point, he was shot,” said Watkins.
Police said another thing that makes this case so difficult is the numerous names that Sandoval used throughout his life.
“Mr. Sandoval had multiple aliases and his actual real name was Jose Mendoza Agular, but he also went by Alberto Diaz. He was apparently involved in the drug trade and had been having multiple run-ins with people around his apartment complex in the month leading up to his death,” said Watkins.
Watkins said it’s possible one of those enemies may have caught up. Despite anything he may have been involved in, Watkins said no one deserves to lose their life at the hand of another.
"Often when people lead a high-risk lifestyle, this is often the outcome of it and no one ever deserves it. I mean yeah, he is committing crimes, but you can pay for that through the judicial system, not by someone's hand,” said Watkins.
If you have any information about the death of Alejandro Sandoval, you can call Tulsa Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS.
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