Left inset: Tyler Johns ((Henderson Police Department). Right inset: Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria (GoFundMe). Background: Body camera footage showing father Valente Ayala pleading with police after Tyler Johns allegedly shot and killed his son Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria during a road rage incident (Las Vegas Metropolitan Police).
Disturbing body camera footage has emerged showing a Nevada stepfather’s heart-wrenching reaction after his 11-year-old stepson was fatally shot by a 22-year-old driver. The suspect, in a chilling moment, reportedly confessed to police on the scene, saying, “I f—ing killed him.”
“I didn”t know he had a kid in the back,” Tyler Johns can be heard telling a responding officer, according to the bodycam footage, which was released by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and shared online by local media outlets. “You shot at him?” the officer asks. “Yeah!” the father, Valente Ayala, says. “My kid is dead!”
The accused, identified as Johns, allegedly admitted to experiencing “road rage” during the tragic incident that unfolded on November 14 along the 215 Beltway in Las Vegas. The footage reveals him surrendering to authorities without resistance, calmly recounting the series of events and expressing remorse for the tragic outcome.
In a poignant exchange captured on the video, Johns inquires about the boy’s condition, asking an officer, “Is there a chance that the kid will be okay?” The officer’s response was both sobering and hopeful: “There’s always a chance. If you’re a praying man, I would be praying right now.”
Johns now faces serious charges, including murder, discharging a firearm from or within a structure or vehicle in a prohibited area, and shooting into an occupied vehicle. According to the Henderson Police Department, the incident stemmed from a verbal altercation with Ayala, who was in the process of driving his stepson, Brandon Dominguez-Chavarria, to school that Friday morning. It was during this confrontation that Johns allegedly opened fire.
Henderson Police Chief Reggie Rader reported during a press conference that the two men were “jockeying for positions, trying to pass each other on the congested freeway.” One of them tried to pass the other using the shoulder, at which point the drivers “rolled down their windows and got into a verbal exchange,” according to Rader.
The violent encounter escalated when Johns reportedly pulled out a handgun and fired shots into Ayala’s vehicle, tragically striking Brandon, who was in the back seat. According to authorities, Ayala then collided with Johns’ vehicle, causing both cars to come to a halt on the freeway. The two drivers exited their vehicles and engaged in a heated argument. A nearby Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officer, flagged down by the commotion, intervened and his body camera recorded the devastating aftermath. Brandon was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries.
Reflecting on the tragedy, Rader stated, “An 11-year-old was on his way to school and this senseless act took his life. It is not worth it to engage in this type of behavior.”
Johns was denied bail during his first court appearance last Saturday and remains in custody.
