Rodolfo Garcia, 44, of Perris is charged with first-degree murder, four counts of armed robbery, three counts of kidnapping to commit robbery, two counts each of false imprisonment and firearm assault and one count each of burglary and carjacking.

Pretrial motions in the case wrapped up Thursday at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta, where Riverside County Superior Court Judge Johnnetta Anderson ordered multiple panels of prospective jurors to appear Monday for the start of screening as to their availability and qualifications.

Garcia is being held without bail at the Robert Presley Jail.

His former co-defendant and friend from childhood, 34-year-old Jesus Ledesma Guzman of Lancaster, was similarly charged but was killed in a gunfight with U.S. Marshals trying to arrest him in Northern California almost eight years ago.

The men are accused of gunning down Silvano Gutierrez Esteves at his residence in February 2018.

According to a trial brief filed by the District Attorney’s Office, the pair were allegedly part of a “home invasion robbery crew” composed of about a dozen men, who wore ballistic vests and masks, wielded high-capacity rifles and waged campaigns of terror against their targets throughout Southern California.

Guzman was believed to be the ringleader and buried at least five victims around his Lancaster property, according to the brief.

Nearly seven months before the slaying of Esteves, on July 17, 2017, the crew went to a Nuevo home where illegal marijuana was grown and forced their way into the residence in the middle of the night, leveling guns at the half-dozen occupants, including three children, ages 3 to 9 years old, the trial brief alleged.

One of the intruders threatened to rape the young girl in the house unless their demands for money and other valuables were met, according to court papers. Her two male siblings were wrested away from their parents and isolated in a room separate from the adults, who were told the youngsters would be abducted unless everyone cooperated, the brief said.

The robbery crew kicked, struck with rifle butts and shoved the victims to the floor, according to documents.

The victims didn’t resist, surrendering “over $10,000, two horse- mounting chairs, marijuana, a counting machine, a safe, super .38-caliber pistol, jewelry, a (pickup) truck and a van,” the brief said.

The loot was taken to Garcia’s house and divvied up, the prosecution alleged.

According to the brief, Garcia had been at odds with Esteves because the victim believed that the defendant had stolen “large quantities of marijuana” from him. The feud between the men ultimately led to Garcia and an unidentified man appearing in front of the victim’s Monroe Avenue house, brandishing handguns and threatening to kidnap him if he persisted in his antagonism, according to the brief.

A few weeks later, in the predawn hours of Feb. 5, 2018, Garcia and Guzman allegedly stormed the victim’s home, prompting Esteves to hide his wife and son in a closet while he attempted to negotiate with the pair, prosecutors said.

The D.A.’s office alleged the defendants ignored his pleas and “repeatedly shot him, then left without stealing a single item from the home.”

Sheriff’s Sgt. Walter Mendez said a “large amount of marijuana” was found at the location, but hadn’t been touched.

“There was no indication of a robbery, simply a premeditated home invasion assassination,” according to the brief.

Sheriff’s detectives ultimately gathered sufficient evidence pointing to Garcia’s alleged involvement, and by extension, Guzman’s. However, by that time, the latter was under investigation by authorities in Los Angeles County for alleged drug-related killings there, according to prosecutors.

Garcia was arrested without incident on Oct. 29, 2018, in Menifee.

Guzman was tracked down by federal agents in Inyo County, where they attempted to take him into custody for the Menifee killing, as well as killings in northern Los Angeles County, according to Mendez.

He said the fugitive opened fire on the agents, who returned fire and killed him.

Court records show Garcia has prior convictions for felony driving under the influence, auto theft and receiving stolen property.

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Jerry Anthony Valdepena Jr., 29, was arrested in 2021 following a years-long investigation that identified him as the second person involved in the 2016 slaying of 26-year-old Jeremy Cooley.

Valdepena is charged with first-degree murder, two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and a special circumstance allegation of killing for the benefit of a criminal street gang.

The prosecution and defense delivered closing statements in the month- long trial Friday, and Riverside County Superior Court Judge Laura Garcia directed jurors to return to the Riverside Hall of Justice on Monday to start deliberations, which they did.

Valdepena is being held without bail at the Smith Correctional Facility. His co-defendant, Jerry Anthony Chagolla, 34, was convicted in 2019 of charges identical to Valdepena’s and was sentenced in February 2021 to life in prison.

According to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, Cooley, his wife, identified in court documents only as “N.V.,” her two sons from a previous relationship and the couple’s newborn daughter moved into a rental home in the 400 block of Alessandro Street, near Nicolet Street, in late spring 2016. They discovered days later that a residence across the street was “an active gang” gathering place for the Eastside Banning SAPOs.

The couple encountered hostile gang members, shouting their affiliation and throwing angry looks at the family, according to the prosecution’s trial brief.

Shortly after midnight on June 5, 2016, Chagolla, Valdepena and others were partying, playing loud music and engaging in other activity, according to court papers. Cooley and N.V. decided to step onto their front porch to drink beer and casually observe the defendants and their friends.

N.V. later told Banning Police Department detectives that she stepped into the house to check on the baby, leaving Cooley alone. According to a police statement, during that period, Cooley walked beyond the residence to request that partygoers lower the noise level.

The defendants became incensed, jumping into Cooley’s face and challenging him to fight, which N.V. witnessed as she stepped back outside, according to the brief.

The woman’s then-15-year-old son, identified in court documents only as “Edgar,” was drawn outdoors by the yelling. N.V. attempted to intervene, “telling the two men that they were a family and had small children inside the house,” the brief stated.

She then asserted, “This is not the first time you guys have tried to (gang) bang on us,” prompting Valdepena and Chagolla to direct Cooley to “get your lady in the (expletive) house so we can handle this,” according to the prosecution.

“One of the defendants also said, `You’re going to catch this fade, or you’re going to catch a hot one,’ meaning that Jeremy was going to fight them, or they were going to do something worse to him, like shoot him,” the brief said.

Edgar then stepped off the porch, prompting his mother to direct him back into the house, but before she could finish speaking, Valdepena and Chagolla jumped Cooley, pulling knives on the unarmed victim, prosecutors alleged.

When N.V. tried to help her husband, an unidentified woman ran out of the party house and pulled her to the ground, the brief said. When Edgar tried to get into the fray, Valdepena allegedly turned toward him with a five-inch blade, but tripped on a rut in the grass, falling onto his back. Edgar outweighed the defendant and jumped on him, intending to pin him down to prevent him from aiding Chagolla in the knife assault on Cooley, according to court papers.

However, Valdepena began stabbing and slashing the teenager, inflicting wounds to both his shoulders and across his chest, causing the boy to roll away, the brief alleged.

“Valdepena then joined Chagolla in his attack on Jeremy,” the narrative said.

The victim broke away and stumbled into his home, bleeding profusely, after which the defendants fled, according to the brief.

N.V. was able to go to her husband’s aid, immediately calling 911.

Cooley was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. An autopsy revealed 24 stab wounds throughout his body. Edgar was also treated there, receiving 26 staples to close his knife wounds, from which he recovered.

Detectives identified Chagolla as one of the perpetrators 10 months later, culminating in his trial and conviction. Valdepena’s alleged involvement was not confirmed until he was positively identified almost five years later.

Court records show he has a prior conviction for felony evading. Chagolla’s priors were not listed.

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Stephen Roy McKernan allegedly killed 75-year-old Claire Carsman in 2019.

McKernan is charged with first-degree murder and sentence-enhancing allegations of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony, inflicting great bodily injury and being in possession of a firearm during a felony.

The case, which has dragged on for years as the defendant experienced health complications, changed attorneys and underwent a lengthy mental competency assessment, was transferred Thursday from the Larson Justice Center in Indio to the Riverside Hall of Justice.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Bernard Schwartz was due to begin considering motions from the prosecution and defense concerning scheduling, witnesses, evidence and other matters on Thursday afternoon.

There was no immediate word on when jury selection might start. McKernan is being held without bail at the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning.

According to testimony from the defendant’s 2020 preliminary hearing, he had known Carsman and her husband, whose identity was not disclosed, for years, and the couple invited him to stay with them in April 2019.

On the morning of April 22, the victim’s spouse headed to an area casino to gamble, leaving his wife and McKernan alone at the single-story residence in the 300 block of Pico Road, near Zanjero Road.

At some point during the roughly six-hour period in which the man was out, an unknown confrontation occurred between McKernan and the woman, culminating in him allegedly attacking her with a household object, prosecutors said.

Carsman’s husband returned around 6 in the evening to find her dead on the floor from “significant trauma” to the upper body, the Palm Springs Police Department said at the time.

McKernan was still at the property when officers arrived in response to the spouse’s 911 call. The defendant was taken into custody without incident.

A forensic technician testified in the preliminary hearing that blood found on the defendant’s shoes, shirt and pants indicated he was near the victim when she was struck with blunt force, which caused her blood to splatter.

McKernan has no documented felony convictions in Riverside County.

—City News Service

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Melvin Mario James Landry, 42, of San Jacinto allegedly killed Gilbert Wah in 2020.

A Banning jury deliberated two days in January before deadlocking, after which Riverside County Superior Court Judge Rene Navarro declared a mistrial.

The case was transferred a week ago from the Banning Justice Center to the Riverside Hall of Justice, where Superior Court Judge Bernard Schwartz began summoning panels of prospective jurors for screening as to their availability and qualifications.

The judge is expected to swear in a panel Monday afternoon, with opening statements possible Tuesday morning.

Landry, who is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Robert Presley Jail, is charged with murder and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.

According to a trial brief filed by the prosecution, on the night of July 23, 2020, Wah, his wife, Octavia Wah, and Landry got together at the victim’s house at 801 S. Camino Los Banos to “drink alcohol and smoke marijuana.”

The defense said in its brief Landry was in the midst of a divorce from his wife, Sylvia Joshua, because “he was caught cheating” on her. He was also suffering depression from the recent death of his mother and was upset that his sister had moved out of the area.

As he, the victim and Octavia Wah drank and smoked long into the night, tensions escalated due to Gilbert Wah’s references to Landry as a “pussy” and “bitch” — demeaning terms used to describe the defendant’s relationship with his wife, according to the prosecution’s brief.

Shortly after 3 a.m. on July 24, Wah became aggressive, slapping Landry across the face, the brief stated.

The defendant did not hit back, but instead went to his Dodge Durango pickup parked in front of the house, grabbed a semiautomatic handgun, then returned to the house and confronted Wah, firing a single shot into his heart, prosecutors allege.

The victim died on the spot.

His wife struck Landry and attempted to stop him from leaving, but he got away from her in his pickup. She called 911, and patrol deputies converged on the location.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Ken Thurm said as personnel were gearing up to begin a search, Landry “returned to the scene and surrendered.”

Court records show the defendant has a prior misdemeanor conviction in Riverside County for driving under the influence. He has a felony conviction in another jurisdiction, but the offense wasn’t listed.

Court papers indicated Wah, too, had a record, including battery on a peace officer in another state, as well as a fraud conviction locally.

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A Riverside jury deliberated nearly two days before finding Steven Daniel Carrillo, 24, of Riverside guilty of killing Derrion Thomas of Rialto in 2020.

Along with the murder count, jurors convicted Carrillo of attempted murder, special-circumstance allegations of killing for the benefit of a criminal street gang and perpetrating a hate crime, as well as sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.

They acquitted him of one attempted murder charge.

Jurors started deliberations Wednesday morning, after the prosecution and defense delivered closing arguments Tuesday afternoon. The panel announced it had reached a verdict late Thursday afternoon.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Jerry Yang scheduled a sentencing hearing for June 28 at the Riverside Hall of Justice. Carrillo, who is being held without bail at the Robert Presley Jail, is facing life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The defendant is a documented member of Riverside’s oldest street gang, prevalent in the area along the University Avenue corridor, authorities said.

In late October 2020, Carrillo was staying with fellow gang members in a room at the Motel 6 near the intersection of Iowa and University avenues, according to briefs filed by the District Attorney’s Office and the defense.

Staying in a room nearby were Sharon Mayweather, Isaiah Smith and Thomas, all related. On Oct. 24, Mayweather was released from the downtown Riverside jail, where she had been held for unspecified reasons, and she became intoxicated at the motel, according to court papers.

“She was hanging around Mr. Carrillo’s (black Jaguar) in the parking lot, and he told her to get away from his vehicle,” according to the defense.

There was a hostile exchange before she returned to her room.

Two days later, on the night of Oct. 26, Thomas and Smith were preparing to drive in the latter’s Saturn sedan to pick up food, and Mayweather was trailing behind when she encountered Carrillo in his car, leading to another confrontation, during which she told Smith and Thomas the defendant had threatened her. They doubted her claims and “ushered” her into the car, the defense said.

Prosecutors said the defendant was incensed, possibly because he had been publicly challenged by a woman in front of three juvenile gang members.

Although his Jaguar had been pointed in the direction opposite to where the victims were going, he turned around and pursued them eastbound on University, according to the prosecution’s brief.

Court papers state the victims tried to avoid further contact, racing through traffic lights until they reached the left turn lane to go into the Food4Less grocery store parking lot at University and Chicago avenues. Carrillo pulled alongside and shouted profanity-laced challenges, at which point Thomas pulled a semiautomatic handgun and “fired up to 11 rounds at Mr. Carrillo,” the defense said.

The Jaguar’s driver’s side window was blown out, but Carrillo and the youths with him were not hit. Smith tried to pull his own pistol out of his front pocket, but the trigger caught on his pants, and he shot himself in the right thigh, according to court documents.

Carrillo pulled his own 9mm pistol and fired into the Saturn, striking Thomas twice, including a fatal wound to the chest, according to the prosecution. Smith tried to flee when the shots were fired but crashed into a traffic sign. He stumbled out of the car and hobbled away to get help.

Mayweather was not injured. Thomas stepped out of the car and collapsed.

Carrillo fled the scene.

Thomas was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Smith underwent surgery to his leg and fully recovered.

Relying on security surveillance video from the motel and businesses along University, Riverside police detectives were able to identify the perpetrator, and an arrest warrant was served on him without incident two weeks later at a residence in the 2300 block of Candlestick Way in Perris.

Investigators seized his journal, in which he “bragged about the shooting,” according to the prosecution’s brief, which said he referred to the victims as “snails” and wrote that “there is a sort of war” between groups.

“The defendant noted he was proud he was able to show the little homies how to gang bang,” the brief said.

The defense blamed Mayweather for provoking the altercation, additionally asserting Carrillo was not the one who initiated violence that night.

The post Car-to-car shooting in Riverside leads to gang member’s murder conviction appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

Attorney Richard Carnero, Deputy Public Defender Solely Diallo, and Attorney A.C. Jones are the defense lawyers for the three men accused of the 2017 crime, Lonzo Lee Ford, Jevante Terrell Stewart and Dameontae Wright Patterson

Former Deputy Michael Meija, now retired, was a detective with the Riverside Sheriff’s Department. While a station-level detective, Deputy Meija was primarily assigned to sex crimes and child abuse.

Deputy Meija explained he had been at home off-duty when he received a call about a shooting and went to the scene. After the call, Deputy Meija recalled going to the station where he met with the lead homicide investigator.

According to Meija, he walked through the scene with the other detective who showed him where the evidence remained, including projectiles and casings.

Deputy Meija reported that he and the other investigator continued to look over the crime scene while they pointed out all discernible evidence. The technician at the scene would then, according to Deputy Meija, mark items they discovered or noted as evidence.

When questioned by the defense about the evidence system, Deputy Meija noted that evidence that could be photographed was numbered and anything that could be taken was marked by a letter.

One by one, the attorney went through casing evidence and photograph evidence, questioning exactly what item was what, as examined by Deputy Meija. The deputy observed three 380 caliber casings and one that belonged to a 45 caliber that the attorney brought forward as evidence.

Then, the attorney presented photo evidence to Deputy Meija, asking what he examined in the image. Deputy Meija reported seeing an “entry point to the screen door by a bullet” and copper inside of the impression. When presented with evidence “32” the deputy stated that he saw the letter B that marked an impact point where the bullet hit the wall.

Deputy Meija was then asked about his prior experience with bullets and strikes. The defense attorney asked, “How many strikes have you seen?” to which Deputy Meija responded, “Hundreds.” The deputy then proceeded to say that not all bullets travel through some things, that some bullets will not even go through drywall.

When presented with evidence “34” Deputy Meija stated that the image consisted of the front of the house and a hole with the copper jacketing still inside. Evidence “36” was noted by Meija as being an image of the hole from the interior of the house.

Deputy Meija, after being questioned by the defense, explained the steps of processing evidence. As maintained by Deputy Meija, the technician gives a list of items and then books them into evidence. They don’t have a physical person retrieving evidence, rather they place all evidence into lockers that, once closed, can only be opened from the other side.

When questioned about the projectile that struck the victim, Deputy Meija responded saying that the projectile was of concern because it could not be located. The technician and Deputy Meija, according to his testimony, spent extra time looking for the projectile to no avail. The attorney then asked, “At some point during the investigation did you know if the projectile had entered the victim?” to which the deputy responded, “I didn’t know.” Then the attorney asked, “Was it possible the projectile was still in the victim?” which Deputy Meija said, “Very possible.”

The attorney was then finished with Deputy Meija’s testimony and called Deputy Stephen Enoch to the stand. Deputy Enoch currently is a sworn police officer, who has served 16 years thus far.

The defense questioned Deputy Enoch about an assault he was called to, the day before the trio allegedly committed homicide.

On Sept. 15, 2017, Deputy Enoch reported being dispatched to a call regarding an assault with a weapon. Once arrived on the scene, the deputy made contact with a Hemet police officer. Deputy Enoch was then met by a mother, who directed the deputy to her son and another individual at the crime scene.

Deputy Enoch reported being told that the vehicle in which the son and the other individual were in was being shot at while they were inside.

The vehicle had been struck four times, including in the windshield and the front near the vehicle’s lights. Deputy Enoch asserted that he found only one projectile and that was submitted into evidence and the car was then photographed as evidence as well.

When asked by the attorney about any witnesses to the crime, Deputy Enoch reported reaching out to neighbors or asking if anyone witnessed the crime to no avail. “No one wanted to be a witness,” reported Deputy Enoch.

The attorney then presented the deputy with an image, a booking photograph of the son who reported being shot at, as noted by the deputy. Enoch reported it was the male at the scene and that he and his mother were cooperative at the time of the crime and gave him a basic statement.

The trial resumed on Tuesday, November 30. No further news.

Natalia Ruvalcaba | Contributed

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