A 24-year-old man from Salinas, Gonzalo Garcia Rodriguez, has been formally charged in the murder of 26-year-old Eugenio Lopez Ramirez, the Ventura County District Attorney's Office reported. The incident unfolded on the evening of February 23, where Ramirez was said to have been stabbed multiple times. The Oxnard Police Department responded to the scene after a 911 call directed them to the 100 block of Wilson Avenue in Oxnard, as KTLA noted, where Ramirez was found with severe injuries and later pronounced dead at the Ventura County Medical Center.
During the investigation that followed, which spanned two weeks, Garcia Rodriguez was identified as the suspect, believed to have attacked Ramirez before the victim collapsed near Wilson Avenue and First Street. Already in custody for a separate domestic violence case at the time of his arrest for the murder, Garcia Rodriguez is also the former boyfriend of Ramirez's girlfriend, which adds a layer of complexity to the case. Charged with first-degree murder and other aggravating circumstances, he pled not guilty, according to the details released by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
Moreover, Garcia Rodriguez's charges include special allegations such as the use of a deadly weapon, causing great bodily injury, and the victim being considered vulnerable. Senior Deputy District Attorney Amber Lee, of the Major Crimes Homicides Unit, leads the prosecution on this case. The court has set an early disposition conference for April 21, at 1:30 p.m., wherein Garcia Rodriguez will return to the Ventura County Superior Court in courtroom 12, remaining in custody without the possibility of bail as the legal process unfolds, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office stated.
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