Two men who posed as DTE workers, killed Rochester Hills man sentenced to prison
Two men who were accused of posing as DTE workers and killing a Southeast Michigan man last year were sentenced on Tuesday.
Carlos Juan Hernandez and Joshua Zuazo each received a life sentence for felony murder and 228 days to 80 years in prison for two counts of unlawful imprisonment. The two men were found guilty on Oct. 3, 2025, for the October 2024 murder of 72-year-old Hussein Murray, of Rochester Hills.
"They need to feel the weight of their sin," said Murray's son, Adbu Murray.
Authorities say on Oct. 11, 2024, Hernandez and Zuazo went to Murray's home and claimed to be DTE workers needing to check a gas leak. Murray escorted the men to the basement. Authorities say the men came back upstairs without Murray and tied up his wife, Linda Murray.
Investigators found Hussein Murray's body in the basement.
A medical examiner testified to finding bruises and lacerations on Hussein Murray's body. The examiner ruled the cause of death to be neck compression and the mechanism of death to be asphyxiation. She also ruled the manner of death to be homicide, ruling out the possibility of a heart attack.
According to authorities, text messages between Hernandez and his wife showed that his wife expressed concerns about being able to afford a house. An investigator testified in court that Hernandez told his wife that he had a plan.
"His life meant nothing to you, and I hope whatever those last words he said to you or whatever that last minute that he looked at you haunts you for the rest of your life," said Judge Yasmine Isshak Poles.
Both men appeared emotionless during Tuesday's sentencing. Hussein Murray's family says they are relieved but still grappling with his death.
"It closes the chapter in this saga, but this really doesn't close the wound, and I don't know if that wound is ever going to close," said Murray's son, Moheeb Murray.
"There's a gaping hole in our hearts that will never be filled, never be closed. My dad was larger than life, and it's a presence that you cannot replace," Murray's son, Rehif Murray.
