The mother of a young Las Vegas woman who was slain almost two years ago told a group of supporters that she would “never let Tabatha’s death become a cold case” as she stood outside the Metro headquarters Sunday afternoon.
“We are here to claim justice for my baby,” Regina Lacerda said of the protest. “This is our second year protesting, and I hope this will be the last one.”
She said the group, made up of dozens of friends, relatives and coworkers, met up at the Metropolitan Police Department headquarters, demanding justice and answers in the case of 26-year-old Tabatha Tozzi, who was allegedly shot and killed by her then-boyfriend, Oswaldo Natanahel Perez-Sanchez, in April 2023 amid a heated argument in her car.
The Review-Journal previously reported that police said that Perez-Sanchez allegedly fled after the shooting, carjacking a witness who was also Tozzi’s friend and driving away. In December, U.S. marshals said in a news release that Perez-Sanchez was still at large.
The FBI has also said that Perez-Sanchez has ties to Southern California and Mexico.
“I do not want more time to pass. I have faith that my daughter’s killer will be caught,” Lacerda said before the demonstration. “I have not lost this faith.”
Before they marched around the parking lot of the police building, two people spoke to the crowd. Samantha “Jersey” O’Brien, one of Tozzi’s friends, thanked everyone for coming.
“Continuing to speak her name daily is more important than you know,” said O’Brien, who wore a cream-colored shirt with a blue heart on the front. The back read “#JusticeforTabathaTozzi.”
Sniffles and sobs could be heard from the crowd while Anna Buda, passed out handcrafted hair clips — blue flowers decorated with butterfly and cross charms — to the women in the audience. She made more than 30 to support Tozzi and her family.
Buda said that the color blue and butterflies were favorites of Tozzi.
“We met at work, and our families became very close. I still think about her every day,” Buda said. “She was so adorable and truly out of this world. Things like this should not happen. We should not be losing so many ladies at the hands of boyfriends or husbands.”
Contact Akiya Dillon at adillon@reveiwjournal.com.
