Former probation officer of Cielo Vista shooting victim speaks out about his character
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)-- The former probation officer of Angeles Zaragoza, the 17-year-old who died in the Cielo Vista shooting, spoke to ABC 7 about the judgement Zaragoza is getting form the community online.
"You know, I haven't had contact with him. I want to say in about probably a year since I left the department, but I would never be able to forget him, you know? He's just one of those people that leaves an imprint on you the way he is and the way he carries himself," Manuel Armendariz said.
Armendariz says he got to know Zaragoza well during their time together.
"I worked with Angeles probably for a good eight months," said Armendariz. "I worked with him daily, so I've seen him on his good days his bad days."
Armendariz says he saw Zaragoza's potential.
"He's actually to himself. He's a very quiet kid. And, you know, with other kids, I can't say that all of them seem to have that, like, you know, he's going to get better," said Armendariz, "But he did. I know he wanted to get his GED. I've seen him, you know, cry over his mom and how bad he felt about, like, you know, putting his mom through, you know, just the heartache of just being a troubled kid. I did see that he was growing and he had potential," said Armendariz.
Armendariz says the hate Zaragoza is receiving online is unjust and he feels the need to defend Zaragoza's character against the online hate.
"You guys don't know him. You guys never met him. You didn't deal with him. You don't know what kind of person he was. And for people to say those kinds of things, it's just honestly, it's heartbreaking," said Armendariz.
