2 teenage boys arrested in Hanford murder

HANFORD, Calif. (KFSN) -- Two teenagers have been arrested on charges of killing a man in Hanford.

The first suspect -- a 15-year-old -- was arrested as he left high school. A second suspect -- a 17-year-old -- was arrested at his home Tuesday night.

Detectives still have a lot of work on this case, but they say it doesn't surprise them that the suspects in this murder are only teenagers. Police say this is a gang-related crime, and they're finding younger and younger kids involved in illegal activity.

Near the train tracks in Hanford, a small memorial was placed on the 500 block of Santa Fe. Candles burned where police say one man lost his life. Hanford police say Roman Aguayo, 27, was stabbed multiple times on November 20.

"I was sitting in my apartment and I heard a knock on the door," said Marvin Eisert, who lives next to where it happened. "A lady was crying, telling me to call the ambulance, and I said 'what happened?' And she said her boyfriend was injured, so I called the police."

The names of the two suspects arrested in this case are not being released because both are under 18, but they're facing serious charges.

"The age of the suspects does not surprise us anymore," said Hanford Interim Police Chief Parker Sever.

Sever says that's because this is gang-related.

"Any time they get involved in those gangs, they sometimes get caught up in crimes that we consider very, very violent," he said.

This is Hanford's first murder in more than a year. Sever says the suspects in the last homicide were also young. The chief says they need more parents to help keep tabs on what their kids are doing to prevent them from joining gangs.

"They need to know where their kids are at, where they're hanging out at, who their friends are; they need to be checking their social media," he said.

Sever says he hopes those steps will help stop recent violence in the community. Until it does, Eisert says he'll stay home.

"I don't go out at night," he said.

Police believe there may be more suspects in this case. Anyone with information should contact the Hanford Police Department.