Post by Scumhunter on Sept 8, 2023 14:46:30 GMT -5
(Above photo credit: kesq.com)
From timesofsandiego.com:
A 30-year-old man suspected in the 2020 murder of a 24-year-old man in Cathedral City was behind bars Thursday while police remained on the lookout for a second suspect.
Johnny Ramirez of Escondido, and 31-year-old Edgar Navez of Desert Hot Springs were each charged with one felony count of murder with a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a weapon during a felony, according to court records. Ramirez pleaded not guilty to the charge Aug. 10 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
Officers responded shortly before 7 p.m. Nov. 23, 2020, to a report of a man down in the area of Avenida Del Yermo and Ramon Road, according to Detective Sgt. Nate Hanley of the Cathedral City Police Department. Upon arrival, officers found Ricardo Gallardo of Cathedral City, an injured assault victim.
Gallardo was subsequently taken to the Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, where he subsequently succumbed to his injuries, Hanley said. A homicide investigation began and by August 2023, it was presented to the Riverside County District Attorney’s office.
“The Riverside County District Attorney’s office filed the case with the Superior Court of Riverside and two arrest warrants were issued for the arrest of the suspects in this case,” Hanley wrote in a statement. “Through the investigation, CCPD Detectives were able to identify the two homicide suspects as (Ramirez and Navez).”
According to a declaration in support of an arrest warrant filed by Hanley, an employee working at a business across the street from the altercation heard the commotion and immediately called to check on his father who was nearby before checking the cameras and seeing two suspects running on Avenida Del Yermo, past his business, and toward Aliso Road.
The employee then walked out to the street to see what happened and saw a group of people where Gallardo was on the ground, according to Hanley. He also saw a black phone on the sidewalk in front of the business where the two suspects were seen running.
An additional video was obtained from Palm Springs Pet Control, which caught the suspects chasing down, catching, and attacking Gallardo before fleeing the scene, Hanley said. A search warrant for the phone determined it belonged to Navez.
In the cell phone, officers found a video that allegedly showed Ramirez driving a vehicle with Navez in the passenger seat eight minutes prior to the homicide, according to Hanley. Other videos also allegedly showed Navez and Ramirez posing with handguns and flashing gang signs.
Ramirez was found and arrested Aug. 8 in Escondido, in northern San Diego County, according to Hanley. Navez, who is described as a 5-foot-10-inch man weighing 160 pounds with black hair and brown eyes, has a $1 million warrant for his arrest.
According to inmate records, Ramirez was booked into the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta, where he remains held on $1 million bail.
timesofsandiego.com/crime/2023/08/31/escondido-man-arrested-in-2020-cathedral-city-murder-desert-hot-springs-man-wanted/
Additional article on case: www.desertsun.com/story/news/crime_courts/2023/09/07/how-phone-encryption-slowed-police-in-solving-cathedral-city-killing/70767887007/
Thoughts? Based on a new article about police having trouble naming suspects due to phone encryption issues that was just posted yesterday, Navez was still at large at least as of September 7th, 2023.
Admin Note #1: According to online articles, anyone with information on this fugitives whereabouts should contact Coachella Valley Crime Stoppers: www.coachella.org/departments/police-department/crime-stoppers
Admin Note #2: If you have any news-related updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-form