‘The heartbeat of our family.’ Friends, relatives remember missing Paso Robles man found dead
Friends and family of a missing Paso Robles man whose remains were likely found last week shared their grief and memories at a community vigil held on Monday — the same day a suspect was arrested for his murder.
Paso Robles police on Friday announced they had found human remains believed to be those of 27-year-old Trevon Perry in a Riverside house.
Perry had been missing since mid-March, when he was last seen leaving a friend’s home on foot after attending a small get-together.
On Monday, police arrested Nicolas Ron, 23, of Paso Robles on suspicion of murdering Perry.
That night, Perry’s family held a vigil in Downtown City Park where 300 to 400 people gathered to honor and remember him. Roses and photos showing Perry grinning at the camera decorated tables around the park.
Attendees held posters decorated with Bible verses and bearing messages including “Justice 4 Tre.”
Family, friends remember Paso Robles man
Community leaders, friends and family members were in attendance, including Perry’s cousin, Porche Hill, and sister, Caryssa Esquivel, who held her brother’s baby daughter in her arms. Attendees stood in the park’s gazebo to share their memories in front of the crowd.
Partway through her remembrance, Esquivel — who was wearing a #JusticeforTre t-shirt — became emotional and turned the microphone over to Porche Hill, Perry’s cousin, who read the rest of the message from her phone.
“Thank you for your tremendous support, love and kind words,” Esquivel said. “There’s no way we can adequately express our sense of loss as Trevon was the heartbeat of our family.”
Esquivel and Hill remembered Perry as someone who “was always overflowing with happiness.”
“Ever since he was a baby, Trevon personified joy, which radiated to everyone around him,” Hill read from Esquivel’s phone.
Homicide witness ‘pursued justice for his best friend’
Perry’s family also talked about his decision to testify in a December 2019 preliminary hearing against 26-year-old Kejuan Bynum.
Bynum is accused of fatally stabbing 23-year-old Cristopher Vento Wilson, one of Perry’s friends. Dan Dow, San Luis Obispo County district attorney, has said his office has not identified a link between Perry’s testimony and his disappearance.
“Trevon loved his friends like family,” Hill read. “Cristopher was like his brother, and Trevon made the brave choice to testify and pursue justice for his best friend.”
“Now Trevon, like Cristopher before him, has been taken from us by another senseless act of violence,” Hill continued. “Trevon is no longer here, and our hearts are shattered. When your family has been taken from you, a piece of your heart goes missing as well.”
Although Perry’s family and friends are grateful he’s no longer missing, they said grieving his death has been overwhelming.
“We have felt the agony of not knowing what happened to Trevon for more than three months,” Hill read. “While there is a mild relief in having answers, the confirmation that your worst nightmare has indeed become reality is a pain no family should ever have to bear.”