A second teenager was identified during a Chandler garage death investigation

The second teenager who was found dead with his friend in Chandler’s garage Marcus Lee, 17, was identified early Tuesday morning, his family confirmed Thursday.

He was with 18-year-old Romeo Elias Alvarez in the garage of the apartment complex where Marcus’ family lives, near Arizona Avenue and Ray Road. The families of the two teenagers were reported missing after they had not been heard from since Sunday evening.

Their bodies were found after families traced the teenagers’ phones and reviewed their last text messages.

According to preliminary data, their death was accidental.

Family and friends of the two teenagers believe they died of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Missing teenagers

Just days before the bodies of Marcus and Alvarez were found, they were each spending time with their families.

According to Merle Lee, Marcus’ father, the teenager had dinner with his family that Sunday after church. At about 1 a.m. the next morning, Marcus, a student at Chandler High School, left the house, telling his brother he was going to the gym.

“He came out and must have met his friend there,” Merle said. “For some reason they decided to park in the garage, I guess because it was cold and there was nowhere else to park.”

Similarly, Alvarez, a freshman at Arizona State University studying medical education, left a family party that Sunday night, according to family friend Andrea Varelas.

Alvarez’s mother, Selena Preciado, reported her son missing.

Since Monday was Veterans Day, Merle woke up with plans to volunteer at the church. He noticed that Marcus was not home and that his car keys were also missing.

Merle assumed that Marcus had also taken advantage of the holiday by running that morning, so he went to the church, taking his wife’s keys.

However, during the day, Merle and Venishaa became worried when their son did not answer their phone calls or messages. When Merle returned home, they filed a missing person report.

Around 7 p.m. Monday, Merle said, police got a call asking if they knew about Alvarez, who was also reported missing in the area. They did not know who the other teenager was.

About an hour later, members of the Alvarez family spotted one of Merle’s other sons skateboarding around their apartment complex and stopped him to ask about Alvarez.

“They said the last time (Alvarez) pinged was there,” Merle said, referring to Alvarez’s cell phone location data. “We came down and put two and two together.”

The families later learned through text messages from their teenagers that they had decided to park in a detached garage that Lee mostly used for storage, Merle explained.

Merle tried to open the garage but couldn’t. Marcus had the garage door opener. Around three o’clock in the morning, the family asked the police to help open the garage

Firefighters were called to help, and they were able to cut a hole in the garage door to look inside with flashlights, Merle recalled.

But when one firefighter went inside, he quickly returned: “Because there was so much carbon monoxide, he had to put on a mask,” Merle said.

Firefighters quickly aired out the garage and returned there, confirming that the bodies of two teenagers were in the car.

“They were probably there — I would say from 3 (a.m.) to 3 (a.m.) — almost 24 hours,” Merle said.

Lee’s family cannot yet arrange a funeral as Marcus’ body is still in the medical examiner’s office.

“It’s just hard, we have to be covered by our son, not the other way around,” Merle said.

Family, friends mourn their beloved teenagers

As the investigation into their deaths continues, family and friends grapple with the loss of two young adults who were embracing adulthood.

“(Marcus) was a smart kid,” Merle from Marcus. “He was outspoken, he was loud, he was very brave. Sometimes he did not retreat from something, in many respects he stood his ground.”

Marcus was a senior at Chandler High and the middle child of seven siblings. He was also an artist who loved anime.

According to Merle, Marcus had ambitions to become a welder, following in the footsteps of his father and Venishach mother, who were both pipefitters.

“He was ready to take on the world,” Merle said.

Marcus was also active in the church his family attends, Potter’s House in Mesa.

“He was well known by all the young people there, just everybody,” Merle said. “Basically, since he was 4 years old when we walked into that church, everyone there just knew him. He had relationships with everyone.”

As for Alvarez, he was described by friends as smart, funny, sociable and “icebreaker” of the group.

In an emailed statement from an ASU spokesperson, the university said it “expresses its deepest condolences to Romeo’s family, friends and loved ones at this difficult time.”

Alvarez graduated from Dobson High School in Mesa in May.

According to the school’s principal, Gabrielle Buckley, some of Alvarez’s former teachers have asked to take time off this week to grieve.

“It definitely struck a chord with the teachers,” Buckley said, noting that some of them were mentioned during the commencement speech he gave at the school’s graduation ceremony.

During his speech, Alverez wore a Spider-Man costume under his dress, something Buckley admitted she wouldn’t normally have allowed, but the costume was in keeping with his message of cherishing his childhood even as he and his classmates took an important step into adulthood.

“(Alvarez was) a really fantastic, dynamic student, fun to be around and wanted to make people laugh,” she said.

Sean Raymundo covers the West Valley cities of Glendale, Peoria and Surprise. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on X @ShawnzyTsunami.