Two Chula Vista men and a woman have pleaded not guilty to involvement in a gang-related murder that took place in 2012 in Imperial Beach.
Reyes Michael Cruz, 26, and Adrian Ernesto Lopez, 20, are charged with the Jan. 28, 2012, murder of Hector Arce, 36, who was shot multiple times in the 1300 block of Imperial Beach Boulevard.
“It is a gang murder. They believed him to be a rival gang member,” said Deputy District Attorney Paul Reizen on Oct. 21. “There is no indication that they knew the victim.”
Reizen said the men have been charged with a slaying to benefit a criminal street gang. Both men remain in jail on $1 million bail.
Shelly Ann Villalobos, 26, of Imperial Beach, is charged as being an accessory after the fact. Villalobos has posted bond after her Sept. 3 arrest by sheriff’s deputies.
Cruz was also arrested Sept. 3 at Chula Vista Superior Court. Lopez was already in jail after being charged with possession of heroin.
A Dec. 3 preliminary hearing has been set for the trio in Chula Vista Superior Court.
Reizen said the investigation is continuing. Also assisting with the sheriff’s department in the investigation is the East County Gang Task Force.
