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A path of blood and damaged acrylic nails helped resolve a grisly Ventura County homicide, authorities say — culminating Friday within the conviction of a pair for beating and murdering the person’s ex-girlfriend.
A jury discovered Margarita Jimenez, 34, of Oxnard; and Jorge Garfias, 38, of Ventura, responsible of first-degree homicide within the slaying of Yanelly Vargas, based on the Ventura County district legal professional’s workplace.
Prosecutors say the assault unfolded minutes earlier than midnight on Saint Patrick’s Day 2024.
Garfias used a textual content message to lure Vargas, his ex-girlfriend, outdoors of a bar in Oxnard, prosecutors stated. He and his new girlfriend, Jimenez, then took Vargas to an alleyway in a close-by industrial space and commenced beating her. Vargas tried to flee the realm on foot, however the couple adopted her in Garfias’ truck, based on authorities.
At 11:53 p.m., the Oxnard Police Division acquired a name of a reported struggle between a person and a girl close to East Wooley Highway and Industrial Avenue.
Because the caller was on the road, a gunshot rang out.
Surveillance digicam footage captured Jimenez getting out of the truck with a handgun and operating after Vargas, based on authorities. She then shot Vargas within the chest and tried to shoot her a second time earlier than leaping again within the truck and fleeing the realm with Garfias, prosecutors stated.
When officers arrived, they discovered the 30-year-old Vargas unresponsive.
The couple had disappeared, however a path of proof was left behind. Investigators recovered a blood-stained rope, a spent 9mm shell casing, a path of blood and acrylic nails that had been later matched to Jimenez, prosecutors stated.
Vargas was taken to a hospital the place she later died. Along with a gunshot wound to the chest, Vargas suffered a number of blunt-force accidents and confirmed indicators of strangulation.
A girl who witnessed the assault from a close-by condominium described the gory scene throughout the trial, based on the Ventura County Star.
“We heard wailing like screaming in terror,” the girl stated, saying the screams had been a “kind of guttural wailing you don’t actually neglect.”
The couple had been arrested on April 3, 2024, and held in custody with out bail, prosecutors stated. They each pleaded not responsible to killing and kidnapping Vargas.
Prosecutors argued that the killing was motivated by Jimenez’s jealously of Vargas, based on the Ventura County Star.
The jury convicted the couple of homicide and located true the particular allegation that Jimenez deliberately discharged a firearm. The 2 weren’t convicted of kidnapping costs and are due again in court docket Monday for a particular trial on extra particular allegations and aggravating elements.
“Thanks to the Oxnard Police Division for his or her swift and thorough investigation to search out the perpetrators of this horrific homicide,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Hyla Schneir stated in an announcement. “We admire the jury’s consideration and cautious consideration of the proof. We hope that this verdict brings a way of closure to Yanelly’s household and buddies.”
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