May 31--The family of Jose L. Velasquez wept as rain fell softly outside on the tree-lined Little Village street.
Inside the home, old photos of Velasquez were arranged among flowers and flickering candles beneath a crucifix draped with rosaries. Memories of the slain 24-year-old were shared with a reporter between long pauses, silent save for the gentle whirring of a ceiling fan.
"He was a blessing to the family," said Vanessa Espejel, Velasquez's 21-year-old niece. "He watched over all of us."
Just before midnight Friday, Velasquez had been walking with his wife on the 2100 block of South Fairfield Avenue when they were attacked by two to three people who emerged from a nearby gangway yelling, police authorities have said. Velasquez was shot in the back and pronounced dead less than two hours later.
Velasquez was a truck driver, his family members said Saturday. He had parked his truck in the nearby lot where he keeps it, then met his wife for a bite to eat. They were walking to their home in the 2800 block of West 21st Street when they were attacked, according to Jose Allende, Velasquez's stepfather.
Police believe the shooting to be gang-related, though Velasquez's family denied he had gang affiliation.
"He was a hard-working man and a truck driver. ... He was a certified mechanic," Allende said, fighting back tears as he pointed to Velasquez's framed diploma from a technical institute, which hung above a doorway.
Velasquez was a mentor, too, according to his niece. He had been helping and motivating Espejel and her fiance, Carlos Roman, to get their truck driver's licenses, too.
In fact, Velasquez had planned to take both of them to the DMV on Saturday morning for the trucker's license test, Espejel said.
"Jose was the kind of guy, if you were down and out, he wouldn't give you a handout. He'd give you the tools," said Roman, 23. "His door was always open. Those were his specific words.
"He was a good guy, man. He didn't deserve this at all. He was one of the good few, honestly."
Velasquez's wife was wracked with grief, Espejel said. Late Saturday morning, she talked to a police detective in a back room as the rest of the family settled in for a long day of dealing with the loss. Food was on the stove. Bottles of Victoria beer and water sat untouched on the table. A painting of the Last Supper hung above the kitchen doorway.
Reyna Martinez, 23, remembered Velasquez breaking up a fight between her and her friends and other girls at the recent Cinco de Mayo festival.
"He was like, 'Stop fighting, girls. Why are you looking for problems?'" Martinez recalled. "He was always looking out for us."
Velasquez was convicted on a misdemeanor charge of reckless conduct in 2012, resulting in a $250 fine and three months of court supervision. But in more recent years, his family members said, he had stopped drinking and smoking, and was focused solely on his truck driving job and his wife.
As other family members passed through the room, Alicia Allende, Velasquez's mother, was the only one sitting. She struggled to speak through sobs in describing her youngest of four boys.
A graduate of Farragut high school, Velasquez liked to help friends and neighbors work on their cars, his mother said.
"There ain't no words to say," Alicia Allende said through Espejel's translation. "He was a good kid, responsible and hard working."
gtrotter@tribpub.com
