Quick Take
The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office has charged a second man with murder with connection to the body of a Watsonville resident discovered at the Pajaro River levee in April.
The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office has charged a second man with murder and conspiracy in connection with the body of a Watsonville resident found buried at the Pajaro River levee in April.
The Watsonville Police Department arrested Jorge Javier Sanchez Torres, 51, of Watsonville on Monday morning in connection to the murder of 36-year-old Watsonville resident Jesus Alfonso Durate Figueroa after Monterey County officials were able to obtain a Ramey warrant — a warrant issued by a judge in California before formal criminal charges are filed, according to a statement from the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. Sanchez Torres was booked into the Monterey County Jail and charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
On Friday, sheriff’s deputies arrested 61-year-old Pajaro resident Bernardino Rickie Sanchez and charged him with the murder of Durate Figueroa. Sanchez was already in custody in the Monterey County Jail for an unrelated drug and weapons violation. The arrests were made following interviews with multiple witnesses, which included people who live along the levee.
Monterey County investigators discovered Durate Figueroa’s body in April by the Pajaro River levee west of the bridge that connects the community of Pajaro, in Monterey County, to Watsonville, in Santa Cruz County. Monterey County sheriff’s spokesperson Andres Rosas told Lookout the department had received information from anonymous sources that led to detectives finding the body.
Investigators were able to identify Durate Figueroa’s body after Monterey County officials were made aware of a missing person’s report filed in Santa Cruz County, said Rosas. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to Lookout that the victim’s family submitted a missing person’s report in March after they did not hear from Durate Figueroa for a week, spokesperson Ashley Keehn told Lookout in April.
A second body was found near the Pajaro River levee almost a month after Monterey County officials discovered Durate Figueroa’s body. The two cases are unrelated, according to Rosas.
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