A jury convicted Trinidad Cervantes Thursday with shooting a man dead on 165th Street in Hammond last year.
They deliberated for less than an hour, according to a prosecutor’s spokeswoman. His sentencing is Dec. 19.
Cervantes testified Thursday he “panicked” and was afraid for his life when he closed his eyes and fired seven shots at an angry driver.
It was self-defense, he said. He thought he saw the other driver reach down, presumably for a gun.
Why did autopsy records show victim Rajesh Bhagwandeen, 26, was shot multiple times from behind, Deputy Prosecutor Jacob Bradewie asked on cross-examination.
Cervantes, 20, insisted they were “next to each other.”
Why did a video played again for the jury show Cervantes’ box truck was behind Bhagwandeen’s low-riding 1990s-era BMW convertible?
“I was so scared,” Cervantes replied to several questions.
He was charged with murder and a gun enhancement in Bhagwandeen’s May 2, 2023 death. He faces 45-65 years for murder and another 5-20 on the enhancement.
During his testimony, Cervantes said he pulled up to stalled traffic on 165th Street near Indianapolis Boulevard when someone was turning left into a nearby business.
As he swung out to get into another lane, he believed he cut Bhagwandeen off, a man he never met. Cervantes claimed the other man was “screaming” and said he would “sue” and “kill” him. Bhagwandeen shaped his hand like a gun, making a shooting gesture, he said.
Bhagwandeen said he would “pop (him),” Cantrell asked.
“I told him to leave me alone,” Cervantes said.
Cantrell added other witnesses said the other man was weaving in and out of traffic.
Cervantes, looking down at the car, thought he saw Bhagwandeen reach for something. Did you aim at him, Cantrell asked.
“I closed my eyes…I fired out the window,” Cervantes responded.
Police arrived at 5:09 p.m. May 3, 2023, at the crime scene near 165th Street and Calumet Avenue.
The driver’s door on 26-year-old mechanic Rajesh Bhagwandeen’s black 1996 BMW was still open. The car was in the middle of the street. It had four bullet holes with seven bullet casings found on the street. He had just left work at a nearby car dealership.
He was taken to the hospital after he was shot “several” times. Bhagwandeen was pronounced dead at 5:41 p.m. at Community Hospital, according to court records.
Why didn’t you turn off a side street to avoid a confrontation, Brandewie asked. Or pull into the nearby CVS parking lot?
Cervantes, originally from Chicago, claimed he didn’t know the area well. Earlier in his testimony, he said he met Elena Hernandez, his former longtime girlfriend, when they were students at Hammond Central.
At the time, he stayed with Hernandez and her father Mike Hernandez, his boss, who lived minutes away. Cervantes was returning from a work job cleaning out a foreclosed property in Lowell with his stepfather, who he just dropped off.
“You are afraid for your life, but you are going to take the route you want to take,” Brandewie countered.
Cervantes testified earlier that Mike Hernandez had encouraged him to keep a gun with him for protection on jobs in case he ran into squatters or a vicious dog.
He claimed he had never fired the gun before. Why didn’t you fire a warning shot, Brandewie asked.
“I just fired. He made me shoot,” Cervantes said of Bhagwandeen.
Later, Brandewie noted Cervantes planned to flee from a relative’s home in Chicago to Texas. He was arrested there before he could.
In court, Cervantes wore a white dress shirt with a bow tie and black and white striped suspenders. He appeared to have distinct facial tattoos.
He acknowledged he went home after the shooting and didn’t call 911.
“I was scared the guy would come after me,” Cervantes said.
“This guy that you killed,” Brandewie responded.
mcolias@post-trib.com
