Justice for Jesse Parrilla

It saddens us to be writing this today. With a heavy heart, our angel Jesse Parrilla- a loving son, friend, cousin, teammate amongst many other things- was tragically murdered on May 16, 2022.

 

He was an innocent bystander at the wrong place at the wrong time. He was helping a friend out by offering her a ride not knowing she was gang affiliated and in danger. Jesse was kidnapped, shoved in his own trunk while his murderers went on a killing spree throughout the other boroughs. Jesse was forced to watch others tragically die. They then drove to a deserted area on Pelham Parkway in the Bronx where Jesse was Shot multiple times. Including his head and chest. His body was then set ablaze by the assailants. 

 

An innocent soul with big dreams and aspirations who worked hard and loved even harder was tragically taken from this world. He was only 22 years old. Jesse attended Genesee Community College. He was a devoted college basketball player who tirelessly worked towards his dreams of becoming a professional athlete. Jesse had plans of starting his own business once he graduated. 

 

Jesse grew up on the Lower East Side and was raised by his single parent, Michelle Morales. A loving mother who lived to raise Jesse to be the man he was. His mother was persistently calling him the night he was killed. The murderers picked up and allowed Jesse to say his final words. “I love you mom.” The call was disconnected and shortly after, Jesse’s life was taken. The bond Jesse and his mother shared is beyond anything words can express. Jesse was all she had. She will never recover from the loss of her son.. to know he was swept up into a situation that had nothing to do with him and he lost his life for it. This is a living nightmare every single day that we can’t ever wake up from.

 

His murderers are still out and amongst us, roaming freely in our community. This is beyond gun violence this is evil. 

Please know that I am not asking or begging for money. I created this GoFundMe page because I am simply a hopeless niece who is trying to think of any way that I could make this even .000000001% better for my family in the very dark days to come. 

 We are crushed. We are empty. We are devastated. We are in disbelief. We are hurting. We do not know how we will ever find joy in anything again, without our basketball star Jesse. All donations will go towards legal fees, aid law enforcement in finding the individuals responsible and grief counseling for his mother. If you are unable to donate- we understand. With your help in even just sharing our story, we hope to find justice for Jesse Isaiah Parrilla. God bless you all.

https://pix11.com/news/local-news/mom-says-gang-killed-son-for-no-reason-left-body-in-burning-car/amp/

https://bronx.news12.com/i-lost-a-part-of-me-manhattan-mother-begs-for-justice-after-son-his-friend-shot-and-burned-to-death