MIAMI (WSVN) - Michael Hernandez died in jail more than a decade after being convicted of killing a fellow classmate and now a South Florida detective who, prosecutors said, was also on Hernandez’s hit list is speaking out.
Andre Martin is a Miami-Dade Police detective and part of his job is looking for bad guys.
Little did Martin know, 17 years ago, one of his own classmates was out to get him.
“I’ve come to terms with the fact that I could have lost my life,” he said.
Hernandez served a life sentence for the 2004 murder of Jaime Gough.
He lured Gough into a bathroom stall at Southwood Middle School in Palmetto Bay and stabbed him more than 40 times. They were both 14 years old at the time.
During his trial, prosecutors said Hernandez was obsessed with serial killers and revealed he had a hit list.
On that list, prosecutors said, was Martin, who he had planned to kill but did not succeed.
In 2016, Hernandez gave a tearful apology in court during a resentencing hearing.
“For how much pain I caused you, I’m sorry,” he said.
In response at the time, Martin said, “I do not accept the apology. I found it to be not genuine.”
“I don’t believe that he really underwent any changes from that time to the time when the crime was committed,” Martin said. “I believe that it is very easy to be apologetic and remorseful when your freedom is on the line.”
Hernandez died on Thursday at the age of 31.
“The death of Michael Hernandez doesn’t bring me any solace or joy,” said Martin. “Neither does it diminish the gravity of Jaime Gough’s death in any way.”
Even Gough’s parents couldn’t believe the man convicted of killing their son had passed away.
Their compassionate hearts immediately turned to the parents of Hernandez.
“I don’t know how they’re going to handle it,” said Jorge Gough, Jaime’s father. “I just hope that God gives them the strength to go through every hour and embrace themselves.”
“One of the messages I want to convey is my continued condolences to the Gough family,” said Martin. “Jaime Gough is not to be forgotten in this situation. I’d also like to extend my condolences to the Hernandez family. They did not commit a crime. They did not kill anyone but they have lost a loved one.”
As of Tuesday morning, it remains unclear how Hernandez died.
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