The mothers of two teenagers believed to be behind the sick hit-and-run murder of a retired Las Vegas police chief have spoken out after both were charged as adults.
Jesus Ayala, 18, and Jzamir Keys, 16, are suspected of intentionally attacking Andreas Probst, 64, as he rode his bicycle along an empty highway in the northwest of the city around 6 a.m. on August 14.
Ayala was arrested the same day and accused of being the driver behind the wheel of the 2016 Hyundai Elantra that struck the retired police officer.
Meanwhile, Keys, who was arrested this week following a police appeal for information, is believed to be the passenger who incited the attack and made a sick video.
Ayala faced 18 new charges in connection with the incident, including murder, attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, leaving the scene of an accident, and numerous separate charges of theft and burglary.
Jesus Ayala, 18, and Jzamir Keys, 16, are suspected of intentionally attacking Andreas Probst, 64, as he rode his bicycle along an empty highway in the northwest of the city around 6 a.m. on August 14
At a news conference Tuesday, Taylor Probst described her father (pictured) — known as “Andy” to her loved ones — as a man of honor and integrity who worked in law enforcement for more than 35 years
His mother said she “doesn’t know” whether her then 17-year-old son can be forgiven for his alleged crimes.
She previously told 8 News Now: “I don’t know why he did that. ‘I don’t know if God can forgive that.’
Meanwhile, Keys, who is believed to have been wearing a face mask at the time of the medical encounter, was arrested by police five weeks after the incident.
His mother told 8 News Now via text message, “My son’s side is being told – ‘the truth’ – and not the inaccuracies the media is trying to portray.”
The suspects appeared for their arraignment in Las Vegas Justice Court Thursday afternoon wearing dark blue Clark County Detention Center uniforms.
Ayala, who has a large tattoo on his right cheek, appeared bored in court photos.
Meanwhile, Keys looked dejected as he listened to Justice of the Peace Rebecca Saxe confirm that there was a legal reason for their arrests.
During an earlier court hearing, two of Keys’ relatives cried and one of Ayala’s female relatives was also present.
Ayala is accused of being the driver behind the wheel of the 2016 Hyundai Elantra that struck and killed Probst
Keys, who was arrested this week after police appealed for information, is believed to be the passenger who incited the attack and made a sick video
Probst, 64, was fatally shot while cycling in northwest Las Vegas on August 14. Footage filmed by the passenger shows that he was intentionally killed by the teenage driver
According to the Journal, she hid her face and held back tears as she walked past reporters outside the courtroom afterward.
According to 8 News Now, Ayala has a lengthy criminal history in the juvenile justice system, while Keys was placed in the child welfare system at the age of eight.
Keys’ mother was charged with five counts of child abuse in 2016 after police officers found her five children, ages 2 to 9, home alone with no access to food, a knife on the kitchen counter and the house in poor condition.
Police said they also linked the teens to at least three hit-and-run incidents on the same day. They believe the killing of Probst, a former police chief in Bell, California, ended the killing spree.
The graphic video shows a dashboard view from the front seat of a vehicle approaching Probst from behind as he drove near the curb on an otherwise traffic-free street.
Laughter and comments can be heard from inside the car before Probst, who was wearing a red shirt and dark shorts, was hit and thrown against the windshield.
A final image from the moving car shows the retired top police officer on the ground next to the curb.
At a news conference Tuesday, Taylor Probst (left) described her father (right) – known to family as “Andy” – as a man of honor and integrity who worked in law enforcement for more than 35 years
Deputy Police Chief Nick Farese called the “intentional” collision with a stolen vehicle and sick video “a cowardly act that has personally appalled me in my 22 years as a law enforcement officer.”
At a news conference Tuesday, Taylor Probst described her father – known as “Andy” to her loved ones – as a man of honor and integrity who worked in law enforcement for more than 35 years.
“We are devastated by Andy’s senseless murder,” she said. “Andy’s life was robbed by two people who didn’t believe the lives of others mattered.”
Probst called on the DA’s office to “prosecute these crimes to the fullest extent of the law.”