In a chilling turn of events, Long Beach Police have made an arrest in the brutal July hit-and-run murder after a five-month investigation. On December 6, authorities confirmed the suspect—a 16-year-old male of Long Beach—currently in custody for unrelated charges has been booked for the murder of 29-year-old Leobardo Cervantes.
The Long Beach Police Department, in a statement on their website, announced that detectives, through diligent work, pieced together clues leading up to the arrest of the teenager. Despite having a suspect in custody, the motive behind Cervantes's killing remains a mystery. The case is slated to be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for consideration later in the week.
The original incident occurred early in the morning on July 9 at the junction of California Avenue and Harding Street. Cervantes was riding his bicycle when a dark-colored sedan, allegedly driven by the suspect, struck him at high speed and fled the scene. First responders discovered Cervantes critically injured and transported him to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries on July 22.
Authorities initially had little to go on; with no suspect information at hand, the Police Department put out a plea for witnesses. Anyone with knowledge about the incident was encouraged to reach out to Homicide Detectives Donald Collier or Chasen Contreras. The Long Beach community, grieving and in shock as the details of Cervantes’s death emerged, hoped for swift justice in this senseless act of violence.
The Long Beach Police Department continues to investigate the case and encourages anyone with additional information to come forward.
