'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAHAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFQABAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAf/xAAUAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA/9oADAMBAAIQAxAAAACcRwP/xAAfEAABBAAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACAQMEBQcQEiIjQWH/2gAIAQEAAT8AsQoDwUM2auAzasNxmillF5XTLeuk087LL//EABQRAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD/2gAIAQIBAT8Af//EABQRAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD/2gAIAQMBAT8Af//Z'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
I Am a Killer season 5 episode 3 on Netflix replays the 1996 homicide of Eric Pavilionis. 27-year-old Eric was shot to death while he was at work by Higinio Gonzalez. Eric's tragic and unexpected death was survived by his four daughters and his wife. This loss continues to haunt them to this day.
This episode of I Am A Killer on Netflix is titled Lives Lost and includes interviews with the killer, the victim's relatives, and others involved in the case.
Eric Pavilionis was shot to death
Trending
Eric Pavilionis was killed on the night of April 22, 1996, while working at a convenience store. Eric had a full-time job, alongside which he worked at the store a few days every week to supplement his family's income.
As revealed in I Am a Killer,
‘He was shot through the chest and died at the scene.’
Eric was shot, and when deputies came, they found him on the floor, bloodied and lifeless. The murderer had departed the scene. However, CCTV footage of the entire incident was found, which greatly benefited the investigation.
Who killed Eric Pavilionis?
Eric Pavilionis was killed by 16-year-old Higinio Gonzalez in 1996. Gonzalez went to rob the convenience store where Eric used to work as a cashier.
Gonzalez went inside the store with a handgun which he thought was empty and attempted to rob the place. Eric, who was the cashier for the night, was forced to give all the money at the counter to Gonzalez. Once the counter was emptied, Gonzalez wanted more money so he asked Eric to open the safe. However, Eric did not have the keys to it, so he could not open it, after which Higinio shot him and fled the scene.
In I Am A Killer, Higinio Gonzalez says that he didn’t shoot Eric on purpose. He claimed that it was an accident as he believed that the gun was not loaded. He only wanted to scare Eric Pavilionis and had no intention of killing him.
Higinio Gonzalez was arrested on April 23, 1996. He confessed to the crime and the case went for a trial. On January 10, 1997, he was sentenced to life in prison, and he will only be eligible for parole in 2027.
According to Higinio, this homicide was either an accident or a botched heist. In the meantime, Joe Coble, a Deputy Yellowstone County attorney who prosecuted this case in 1996, says on the episode that he thinks Higinio Gonzalez shot Eric Pavilionis intentionally, and not by accident because the security tape recovered from the crime scene made this very clear that the killing was intentional. Here is what Joe Coble said:
“Clearly , he put the bullet in the gun and described having one bullet. He pulls the trigger knowing that there’s a bullet in that gun. It appears as though he is just trying to distance himself from his murder ...”
To know more about this case, watch season 5 episode 3 of I Am A Killer, titled, Lives Lost, now streaming on Netflix.
