The mother of a man who was shot outside a Gwinnett County restaurant more than three weeks ago said she forgives the shooter and asks that he turn himself in.
“Even after what he did, we, as Christians, have forgiven him and we want him to be ashamed and, if possible, to turn himself in to the authorities,” the woman said. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution spoke to her in Spanish on Friday. She did not want to be photographed or identified.
Police say Carlos Alvear-Olive, 44, is wanted on charges including aggravated assault and sexual battery in connection with the June 6 shooting in unincorporated Norcross. Officers responded that day to a shooting call at 5935 South Norcross Tucker Road and discovered a man outside Mariscos el Korita, a restaurant in the North Rockbridge Plaza Shopping Center, with multiple gunshot wounds, according to a news release.
The victim, identified as 28-year-old Jose Daniel Nieto was released from the hospital last weekend, police confirmed. He is recovering at home and has improved tremendously, his mother said.
“We feel at risk, we are traumatized. My son is terrified, he is not sleeping well and that’s why he was under sedation, so it wouldn’t obstruct his recovery,” she said. “As his mother, I felt terrible. It impacted me greatly, however, I always had faith in God that my son will be okay, even after being shot six times.”
Investigators said the incident began around midnight. Alvear-Olive is accused of inappropriately touched a woman inside the restaurant. Nieto confronted Alvear-Olive and escorted him outside, police said. Nieto was shot in the torso; the suspect ran.
Nieto lost his right kidney and appendix and an abdominal wound has not fully healed after a third surgery, his mother said. He was also hit in the right wrist, impacting his movement.
Nieto’s mother and father live in Venezuela and had arrived to visit their sons and grandchildren just a week before the shooting took place.
“We are a calm, peaceful family. My son is an athlete, he didn’t come to this country looking or to cause trouble but it happened,” she said.
Nieto does taekwondo and kickboxing, even winning tournaments in the U.S. He moved to the U.S. seven years ago and has two children, a 4-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter. She said her son works in construction and had an additional job at the restaurant.
“When he woke up, the first thing he did is to ask for forgiveness for something he hadn’t done. He asked for forgiveness but I told him he had nothing to ask forgiveness for and he said that he failed us,” his mother said. “He didn’t do anything wrong, that’s why I told him he didn’t have anything to ask forgiveness for. What he did was a chivalrous act.”
Nieto’s mother said she decided to speak up in hopes it will lead to an arrest. The family is also asking for financial help to pay Nieto’s medical bills.
Anyone with more information is asked to contact Gwinnett detectives at 770-513-5300 or Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS (8477) or stopcrimeATL.com. Crime Stoppers tipsters can receive a cash reward for information leading to an arrest and indictment in this case.
