SANTA ANA MAN TO BE ARRAIGNED FOR MURDERING A MAN WITH 25-POUND CONCRETE PIECE IN HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT

SANTA ANA MAN TO BE ARRAIGNED FOR MURDERING A MAN WITH 25-POUND CONCRETE PIECE IN HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT

SANTA ANA – A Santa Ana man is scheduled to be arraigned today on murder charges for killing a man by beating him with a 25-pound concrete piece after knocking him to the ground. Jorge Alejandro Lopez, 33, is charged with one felony count of murder with a sentencing enhancement for personal use of a deadly weapon. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life in state prison. The People will be requesting the defendant be held on $1 million bail at his arraignment this afternoon, July 21, 2010, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana.

On July 17, 2010, Lopez is accused of walking up to a transient encampment with a friend and punching Marco Rojo Nieto in the face knocking him to the ground. The defendant is accused of kicking Nieto while he was lying defenseless on the ground before picking up a 25-pound piece of discarded concrete and striking the victim twice, once in the chest and once in the face.  The defendant is accused of fleeing the scene in a friend’s car.

Witnesses called 911 and the Santa Ana Police Department responded. The victim died at the scene due to blunt force trauma. Nieto was married and had a teenage daughter.

Deputy District Attorney Larry Yellin of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.

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