Date: January 8, 2015
LAW ENFORCEMENT SEEKS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON CHRISTMAS EVE MURDER OF JUVENILE DOCUMENTED GANG MEMBER IN SAFETY ZONE
SANTA ANA – Law enforcement is seeking additional information on a murder of a juvenile documented gang member inside a gang injunction safety zone on Christmas Eve. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) had filed a preliminary gang injunction in August 2014 against a Santa Ana criminal street gang, which named and sought to enjoin 17-year-old Angel Arellano, who was murdered inside the safety zone named in the injunction. At the time of the murder, Arellano was contesting the injunction and was not subject to its terms. There is a pre-trial scheduled on the injunction on Jan. 13, 2015, at 9:00 a.m., in Department C-14, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.
On the night of Dec. 23, 2014, Arellano and some fellow gang members were armed and looking for rival gang members in the safety zone named in the injunction. Before midnight, Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD) officers responded to a call of four to five shots fired on South Sullivan Street. While at the scene, SAPD officers were informed that Arellano had been taken and abandoned at Coastal Communities Hospital with multiple gunshot wounds. Arellano was immediately transported to Western Medical Center Santa Ana in critical condition, where he later died as a result of his gunshot wounds.
“It’s hard not to wonder, had Arellano been enjoined in the injunction and complied with the 10:00 p.m. curfew, he would still be alive today,” stated District Attorney Tony Rackauckas. “This case is exactly what we were trying to prevent by filing the criminal street gang injunction.”
SAPD is investigating the murder case. Anyone with additional information is encouraged to contact SAPD homicide detectives at (714) 245-8390, or submit an anonymous tip to OC Crime Stoppers at 855-TIP-OCCS or at occrimestoppers.org. SAPD is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects in this case.
Deputy District Attorney Susan Eckermann of the OC GRIP and Gang Injunctions Unit is prosecuting the lawsuit and is representing the OCDA in this civil gang injunction case.