Who Hector Estrada Is In Dexter: Original Sin

Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Dexter: Original Sin and Dexter season 7.Harry Morgan's (Christian Slater) days as a Narcotics detective in Dexter: Original Sin saw him hunt for Hector Estrada, but the prequel show didn't explain just how important the drug kingpin is. The cast of Dexter: Original Sin includes several characters from the original series. Major characters like Harry and Debra obviously pop up in the story of Dexter's early days as a serial killer, but there are also some more minor figures who play a much more important role in the prequel series. Some of them only appeared in a few episodes of Dexter's eight seasons, and viewers may have forgotten who they were.

One character who was somewhat forgettable in Dexter but should prove to be indispensable in Original Sin is Hector Estrada. In Dexter: Original Sin episode 2 and 3, Harry recruited Laura Moser (Brittany Allen) to work as his criminal informant in the search for Estrada, a major drug dealer in Miami. While Laura herself is memorable for being Dexter's mother, Estrada's name doesn't carry nearly as much weight. Despite not having a huge role in the original series, Hector Estrada was one of the biggest reasons Dexter became a serial killer in the first place, and everyone should know why he's so important to Original Sin.

Hector Estrada Is The Drug Lord Who Killed Dexter's Mother, Laura Moser

Hector Estrada & His Men Killed Laura For Working As Harry's Criminal Informant

In both Original Sin and the original Dexter, Hector Estrada had a major effect on Dexter. Estrada eventually found out that Laura was working as a criminal informant for the police, which caused him to order two of his men to brutally murder Laura in a shipping container. Unfortunately, both of Laura's sons - Dexter and Brian - were present for the execution, and they were left sitting in a pool of their mother's blood for days. Harry Morgan eventually found the shipping container and rescued the boys, and he adopted Dexter as his own son.

Hector Estrada is played by Nestor Serrano in Dexter and by Carlo Mendez in Dexter: Original Sin.

The reason Hector Estrada is such an important part of Dexter's development is because Laura's murder created Dexter's dark passenger. Dexter was traumatized by watching his mother getting butchered and then sitting in her blood for days, and it created his infatuation with blood. That, in turn, created his desire to kill, which eventually led to him becoming a serial killer. In a way, Hector Estrada is the reason Dexter became a killer, and he indirectly killed himself almost 40 years after he killed Laura.

Dexter Kills Hector Estrada In Dexter Season 7 After Killing The Rest Of Laura's Murderers

Maria LaGuerta Got Hector Released From Prison So She Could Catch Dexter

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Years later, in Dexter season 7, Dexter finally got a chance to take revenge against Hector Estrada for what he did to Laura Moser. Dexter had already killed one of the men responsible for Laura's death - Santos Jimenez - but he had to wait until Estrada was released from prison to kill the leader. Jimenez had turned on Estrada at some point in the past, and he entered witness protection while Estrada went to jail. Then, when Maria LaGuerta was trying to prove that Dexter was the Bay Harbor Butcher, she had Estrada released to tempt Dexter into killing him, which he did.

Is Hector Estrada Really The One Holding Jimmy Powell In Dexter: Original Sin?

Hector Estrada May Have Been Arrested For Kidnapping Jimmy Powell, Not Murdering Laura Moser

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There's a chance that Hector Estrada may have an even bigger role in Original Sin than he already does. Original Sin revealed that Judge Powell's son, Jimmy, had been kidnapped, though it didn't show by who. Captain Spencer (Patrick Dempsey) suggested that the cartel may have kidnapped Jimmy because of the judge's history of being tough on drugs. If Spencer is right, then it could very well be Estrada who kidnapped Jimmy. He's the only cartel member the show has mentioned so far, and the original series never specified when Estrada went to jail, only that he did sometime before the beginning of Dexter.

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There are, however, a few hints that Estrada went to jail in the immediate aftermath of Laura's death. In Dexter season 2, which takes place 15 years after Original Sin, Francis suggested that Jimenez had been under witness protection for 34 years, which would also mean that Estrada had been in jail for a similar amount of time. It seems possible that Spencer was wrong, and that someone other than Estrada and the cartel kidnapped Jimmy Powell. Whoever is ultimately responsible will likely have to worry about not only the police catching them, but also Dexter himself.

Dexter: Original Sin Release Schedule Episode # Title Release Date 1 Original Sin December 13, 2024 2 Kid in a Candy Store December 20, 2024 3 Miami Vice December 20, 2024 4 Fender Bender December 27, 2024 5 F is for Fuck-Up January 3, 2025 6 The Joy of Killing January 10, 2025 7 The Big Bad Body Problem January 24, 2025 8 Business and Pleasure January 31, 2025 9 Blood Drive February 7, 2025 10 Code Blues February 14, 2025

Though someone else could have kidnapped Jimmy Powell, the chance to give Harry Morgan another run-in with Estrada in the present seems like too good of an opportunity for Original Sin to pass up. It would bring up so many emotions about Laura and her murder, and it would also cause such an interesting conflict with Harry trying to hide the truth about Dexter's mother. Tying Estrada to Jimmy's kidnapping would also perfectly connect Harry's flashbacks with the current storyline in Dexter: Original Sin that the show may do it just to take advantage of all the story opportunities it creates.