Police in the past two days have arrested six suspects in connection with the January 2011 beating homicide of a 39-year-old Hollister man on Park Hill and have alleged it was retaliation against the victim for being a witness to another crime.
Five of the suspects are juveniles. The sixth suspect is 22-year-old Conrad A. Copado, of Hollister, who is in state prison on a separate local conviction. Four of the juveniles are being charged as adults at the San Benito County Courthouse, with the other yet to face court proceedings.
They are accused in the Jan. 4, 2011 assault on Park Hill of Mark Arballo, who suffered injuries to his head and face. He succumbed to his injuries in early February. Authorities are alleging it was a gang-related crime.
One of the juvenile suspects – 17-year-old Ray J. Gonzales of Hollister who was age 16 when the assault occurred – was arraigned Thursday and entered a not guilty plea. The others have yet to enter respective pleas, said Deputy District Attorney Patrick Palacios, who is overseeing the case.
The other known juvenile suspects from Hollister include Isaiah G. Mendoza, a 16-year-old male who was 15 at the time of the assault, while Palacios alleged he “personally killed” the victim; Tanya Jiminez, an 18-year-old female who was 16 at the time of the assault; and Lizette V. Castillo, a 17-year-old female who was 16 when it happened.
The sixth suspect who was apprehended Friday, a 16-year-old from Santa Clara County, had yet to appear in court, said police Capt. David Westrick.
The five charged so far face respective allegations of first-degree murder along with other gang-related felonies. Due to ages at the time of the murder and other circumstances for each suspect, potential exposure varies from 35 years to life in prison to life without parole, Palacios said.
Facing serious charges is nothing new for Copado. Judge Steven Sanders in December sentenced him to 17 years and eight months in state prison on a conviction for the stabbing at a 2009 Halloween party on Hawkins Street.
The other suspects are in custody at San Benito County Juvenile Hall on bail set at $1.5 million.
“The victim was a witness to a prior crime,” said Palacios, who would not elaborate on details of the crime for which Arballo testified. “That was part of the motivation to carry out the crime.”
Palacios said he “commended” Hollister police on the investigation.
Westrick said there were many “keys” to the arrests.
“This is an in-depth investigation and we had hundreds of leads,” said Westrick, adding that police worked with the sheriff’s office, probation department and the California Department of Justice.
Just one of the suspects, Gonzales, has an attorney to this point. He is represented by public defender Greg LaForge.
The three other juveniles who have been in court have a continued arraignment set for 2 p.m. Tuesday while they try to obtain counsel.
Anyone with information should call Detective Theresa Aguilera at (831) 636-4330. People wishing to remain anonymous can call WeTIP at (800) 78-CRIME.
