A Modesto man has pleaded guilty to gunning down a store clerk during a 2019 robbery that netted roughly $45, admitting to first-degree murder more than seven years after the killing shook west Modesto. Favian Marcos Ramirez, 28, entered his plea on Oct. 8 in Stanislaus County Superior Court, closing out a case that began with a brazen daylight shooting and ended with his capture less than nine hours later.
Ramirez pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and robbery. According to a report, he separately admitted an allegation that he personally and intentionally discharged a firearm, causing great bodily injury or death, and he now faces life in prison.
The killing happened on July 9, 2019, when Ramirez walked into Liberty Adult Books at 1030 Kansas Ave. in west Modesto. The same report states that Ramirez shot clerk Cinnamon Eades in the head, then shot her a second time, took approximately $45 from the store's register, walked behind the counter and shot her a third time, then took several items before fleeing.
Clerk Died After Being Rushed to Hospital
Eades suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was taken by ambulance to a local hospital, where she died, the Modesto Bee reported at the time. That contemporaneous account described the cash taken from the register as an undisclosed amount, differing from the later figure of roughly $45 cited in the 2026 report on Ramirez's guilty plea.
Modesto police homicide detectives launched an investigation and identified Ramirez as the shooter. Detectives and SWAT officers apprehended him in Ceres around 11 p.m. that same night, less than nine hours after officers were first called to the bookstore, per the same account. Ramirez subsequently admitted to the killing during an interview with investigators, the report notes.
Trial Canceled as Sentencing Looms in November
Ramirez had been headed toward a jury trial before changing his plea during the Oct. 8 hearing. Judge Linda McFadden canceled the scheduled trial and set sentencing for Nov. 20, the same outlet reported. Assistant Chief Deputy District Attorney Dannica Molina and Deputy District Attorney Mark Garcia prosecuted the case on behalf of the people.
The case moved through the Stanislaus County Superior Court system for years after the 2019 shooting first drew attention from local outlets, including a CBS Sacramento report on the initial investigation and a Ceres Courier account of Ramirez's capture. Ramirez's admission to discharging a firearm causing great bodily injury or death falls under sentencing enhancements outlined in California Penal Code Section 12022.53.
With Ramirez's guilty plea entered and his trial off the calendar, the case now moves to sentencing next month before Judge McFadden, where Ramirez faces life in prison for a killing that began with a robbery worth less than fifty dollars.
