Man charged in brutal 2022 murder sentenced to prison

LONGVIEW — A Gladewater man pleaded guilty to murder on Monday after being accused of killing Victor Hugo Herrera in 2022 with a claw hammer. According to our news partner KETK, Preston Wade Graham pleaded guilty on Monday in the 188th District Court in Gregg County and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

According to an arrest warrant, on Oct. 10, 2022 Longview officials received an emergency call from the roommate of Herrera. Officials said when police responded to the residence in the 1000 block of Baxley Lane in Longview, the roommate said Herrera was injured and appeared to be struck in the head sometime between Oct. 9 and Oct. 10.

The roommate had tried making contact with Herrera since Oct. 9 but after not hearing from him, the roommate used a spatula to pry his way into the room on Oct. 10 and found Herrera on the floor against his bed and called the police.

Officers noticed a bloody footprint leading away from the residence from an exterior door in Herrera’s room and a bloody claw hammer. Documents showed that Herrera had injuries to the left side of his head and behind his left ear. He later died from his injuries on Oct. 11 and the autopsy ruled his death as homicide.

Officials reportedly found a fingerprint on a “water bong” in Herrera’s bedroom that was later determined to belonged to Preston Wade Graham. The arrest warrant concluded that due to information found in Graham’s cell phone, human blood found in his truck and the fingerprints found in Herrera’s bedroom, police arrested Graham. They suspected Graham to have struck the victim with a claw hammer in his bedroom, the warrant said.