Wife of fake DTE worker pleads no contest for role in Rochester Hills murder
Amanda Ileana Hernandez
The wife of a man sentenced to life in prison for posing as a DTE worker and murdering a Rochester Hills man, has pleaded no contest for her role in the 2024 killing.
The backstory:
Amanda Ileana Hernandez was charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree home invasion, accessory after the fact, and conspiracy to commit false impersonation of a utility worker.
Hernandez, 34, entered her plea on Wednesday and will be sentenced on Aug. 12.
She is the wife of Carlos Hernandez, who, along with a second man, Joshua Zuazo, posed as DTE workers to break into a Rochester Hills residence and killed the homeowner as part of a robbery.
The ruse was to get inside Hussein "Sam" Murray's home before killing him in October 2024. Amanda Hernandez is accused of playing "an active role in the planning and cover-up of the crime."
Carlos Hernandez and Zuazo were sentenced to life in prison without parole in December, 2025, after being found guilty..
Amanda's role:
Though Amanda Hernandez was not present when Murray was killed, authorities said text messages she exchanged with her husband show that she did play a part in the murder.
Excerpts of the texts that were shown during the trial of Carlos Hernandez and Zuazo showed that Carlos and Amanda discussed money they would get from the crime.
More: Read more of their text messages here.
In one text message, Carlos Hernandez texted his wife saying that he hoped they would get enough money to buy a house. Other messages showed that Amanda Hernandez allegedly assisted with creating fake identification badges that the men used to gain access to Murray's home as fake DTE workers.
During Amanda Hernandez's arraignment, the prosecution also alleged that she helped her husband flee to Texas after the murder.
The murder:
Carlos Hernandez and Zuazo were clad in utility worker garb and had a DTE signage on their vehicle and branded paperwork on a clipboard.
They first went to the victim's home on Newcastle Drive the night before the murder, claiming they were with DTE and were there to check a gas leak. When Hussein Murray's wife, Linda Murray, did not let them in, they said they would come back the next day, and they did.
During that visit, the men were let into the house and led down to the basement. Linda testified that Carlos Hernandez and Zuazo then came back upstairs without her husband, and Carlos Hernandez repeatedly asked her where the money, safe, and jewelry was.
When she asked the men about where her husband was, she said Zuazo told her "he was asleep." She said she then saw blood on his vest and screamed. She claimed Carlos Hernandez struck her when covering her mouth, asking her to be quiet. She was then bound with duct tape.
Items were then taken from the house by the suspects, including jewelry and cash.
Wife of DTE impostor who murdered man arraigned on charges
Amanda Hernandez, the wife of one of two men who posed as DTE workers to get inside a Rochester Hills home and murder a man, was arraigned Wednesday on charges stemming for her alleged role in the plot.
The Source: Information for this report is from previous coverage and an update from Oakland County courts.