A quiet gravel road out in rural Mississippi turned into a nightmare early one Sunday morning. Deputies thought they were just rolling up on a regular old car wreck. But what they found inside that van was way worse a dad and his daughter, both shot multiple times and dead.
Victor Gonzalez was 42, and his daughter Serenity was just 19. They lived in Memphis and worked side by side as electricians, fixing up houses around the area. Their van had crashed on River Road near Sardis, about 50 miles south of home. Panola County ruled it a straight-up double homicide.
The two had headed out after work on February 28. They were planning to grab some food and then meet up with somebody from Facebook Marketplace to buy a PlayStation 5. Next thing anyone knew, around 7 a.m. the following morning, deputies got the call about a single-vehicle crash. Muddy tire tracks told the story looked like that van had been trying to haul ass out of there.
A tweet from X.
Victor’s son and Serenity’s brother, Jessie Waterman, opened up to reporters about the gut punch the family’s still feeling.
“They were working on that day, and they were going to eat, and after that they were going to pick up a PS5 from Facebook Marketplace,”
he said. But something about the scene just didn’t sit right with him.
“Normally, they don’t have mud and stuff like that on the van… it looks like they were trying to flee from the scene.”
The whole family’s in shock and disbelief. Jessie put it plain:
“If I was to ask a question it would be, why? All of this, it doesn’t make any sense.”
They’re convinced the Marketplace meetup was a setup, though the sheriff hasn’t confirmed that yet.
Panola County Sheriff Shane Phelps is heading up the investigation.
“We did receive a call Sunday morning around 7 of a one-car wreck,”
He said.
“On arrival of our deputies, they noticed one victim was deceased, and shortly thereafter the other victim as well was deceased.”
He added there’s still plenty he can’t talk about right now, but he hopes to share more soon. No suspects have been named. If you’ve got any info, call Crime Stoppers at 662-209-2011 tips can stay completely anonymous.
This whole thing is a brutal reminder that online deals can go sideways fast. Cops across the country keep saying the same thing: meet in public during daylight, bring a buddy, and trust your gut if anything feels off. A lot of departments even set up safe exchange spots right at the police station so nobody has to take chances.
Victor and Serenity were just trying to score a gaming console for the family. Now their story’s out there as one more warning sometimes that little bit of convenience isn’t worth the risk when you’re linking up with strangers from the internet.
