One year after the shooting death of Juan Arellano, Jr., police
have not identified or caught up with any suspects and a $5,000
reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of his
killer remains on the table, police said.
One year after the shooting death of Juan Arellano, Jr., police have not identified or caught up with any suspects and a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of his killer remains on the table, police said.
Even though the reward has been posted in a number of publications, and investigators received a number of early leads following the Oct. 2, 2009 homicide, authorities have turned up “nothing we can follow up on,” Sgt. Jerry Neumayer said.
Police are still hoping that a witness or anyone with any knowledge of the crime comes forward.
“We rely a lot on the community to alert us to any suspicious activity, especially in regard to gangs,” Neumayer said. “People should not hesitate to call us.”
Arellano, 24 of Hollister, was shot on the sidewalk outside an apartment complex on the 17600 block of Crest Avenue, about 11 p.m. Oct. 2, 2009. Based on witness interviews and other evidence, police think at least two male Hispanic suspects, between 16 and 20 years old, were involved in the shooting with a 9mm hand gun.
The shooting is believed to be gang-related, police said. Witnesses at the scene said they overheard the suspects exchanging gang-related slurs with Arellano, who was by himself at the time of shooting, police said.
The homicide followed two other violent incidents earlier the same evening. A 16-year-old male was beaten by at least one male suspect at the bus stop near Main and Hale avenues in the late afternoon Oct. 2, 2009. The victim was hospitalized for several days, with a ruptured spleen and other injuries, following the assault.
After that, a Gilroy man was stabbed about 14 times by a group of males wearing blue clothing at Tennant Station, between Morgan Hill Bowl and Safeway grocery store. The 31-year-old victim was treated at Saint Louise Regional Hospital.
No arrests have been made in connection with those incidents, Neumayer said. Police think all three incidents are related, but have not been able to prove the connection.
Also remaining on the table is a $1,000 reward offered by Morgan Hill Bowl for information about a suspect or suspects in that case, general manager Tim Brown said.
Arellano’s father and former girlfriend said in an interview days after his death that the homicide victim was not involved in any street gangs, and was in “the wrong place at the wrong time.” They said Arellano had received a phone call from SpeeDee Oil in Hollister the morning of his death, to let him know they were interested in hiring him for a job he had applied for.
His father and former girlfriend could not be reached for comment on the one-year anniversary of Arellano’s death.
Following a possible lead in the homicide in January, police arrested Mario Flores, 20, who they identified as a “person of interest” in the homicide. Flores was not a suspect, but a subject that police had heard “third-hand” was someone they should talk to, Neumayer said.
When Flores was arrested in Merced County Jan. 8, police said he had firearms and marijuana in his possession.
The growing length of time that passes with dwindling leads in serious cases such as the homicide can either help or hinder the investigation, Neumayer said. On one hand, people’s memory of events can fade after a year or more, and witnesses or suspects might move away.
But on the other hand, people who might have important information can feel increasingly guilty “and feel they have to say something” to police, Neumayer said.
Anyone with information about the homicide of Juan Arellano, Jr., or any other incidents that happened Oct. 2, 2009 may call Morgan Hill Police at (408) 779-2101.
