News (Media Awareness Project) - US FL: 4 Held In Case Of Slain Family |
| Title: | US FL: 4 Held In Case Of Slain Family |
| Published On: | 2006-10-28 |
| Source: | Tampa Tribune (FL) |
| Fetched On: | 2008-01-12 23:07:42 |
4 HELD IN CASE OF SLAIN FAMILY
WEST PALM BEACH (AP) -- Authorities investigating the slaying of a family of four alongside a Florida highway said Friday that the father probably was involved in drug trafficking and that the suspected killer is in custody.
The suspect was among three men and a woman arrested Wednesday on drug charges who are "persons of interest" in the killings, St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara said. No one has been charged in the slayings.
The couple and their two young sons were found shot to death Oct. 13 off a desolate stretch of Florida's Turnpike near Port St. Lucie, about 50 miles north of their home in the Palm Beach County city of Greenacres.
Police searching the victims' home after the killings found evidence that the dead father, Jose Luis Escobedo, 28, had been involved in cocaine trafficking, Drug Enforcement Administration agent David Weeks said in court papers filed Friday. The items included "suspected drug ledgers" and plastic packaging used to wrap illegal narcotics.
Investigators linked the drug suspects to Escobedo through references in the ledgers that included detailed accounts of drug payments and debts owed, among other things, the DEA agent said.
A search of the West Palm Beach home where the three male suspects were living turned up suspected cocaine, ecstasy and drug packaging material, the agent said. Investigators also found more than a dozen guns, including an AK-47 assault rifle. The DEA agent did not say whether the weapons were used in the killings.
There also was a photograph of Escobedo with one of the suspects, Danny Varela, 26, according to court papers. The sheriff identified the other suspects as Liana Lopez, 18, Daniel Troya, 23, and Ricardo Sanchez, 23.
Mascara would not say which of the suspects is thought to have shot Escobedo, his 25-year-old wife, Yessica Guerrero Escobedo, and their sons, Luis Julian, 4, and Luis Damian, 3. But he told The Associated Press that it appeared those responsible for the killings were in custody.
The four suspects are charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
Another Man Arrested In Drug Case
A fifth man, Juan Gutierrez, was arrested and charged in the drug case, but he is not named as a person of interest in the slayings. According to court papers, he was cooperating with authorities and told them that he and Varela were at Escobedo's home before the killings and helped destroy drug packaging material.
Officials also cleared Michael James Naujalis of Lake Worth of involvement in the case. Naujalis was the last registered owner of a 1999 red Dodge conversion van that authorities think was involved in the slayings. Naujalis sold the van in August to Varela, but Varela never completed the transfer of title and ownership.
DEA spokeswoman Jeannette Moran said they made their initial appearances in federal court Friday in Fort Pierce. A bail hearing was set for Friday. All of the suspects have lengthy criminal records.
Lopez's attorney, Ronald Chapman, said Friday that he had just been assigned the case by the federal court and wasn't prepared to comment. Troya's attorney, Ruben Garcia, also said he had just been assigned the case.
'There May Be Homicide Charges'
"Indications are that there may be homicide charges filed," Garcia said Friday. "That's all I can tell you right now."
Phone messages left for the other suspects' attorneys were not immediately returned.
Mascara said the investigation of the deaths quickly led them to think this was a deliberate act on the family for drugs, money or both.
Investigators think the family's Jeep was pulled to the side of the highway between 1:30 and 3 a.m. and that someone inside the vehicle shot them and drove away. Authorities have said the victims appeared to be lying down or kneeling when they were shot. The woman was clutching her two sons in an apparent effort to protect them.
The Jeep was found abandoned in West Palm Beach three days later.
The family had moved to Florida in June from the Brownsville, Texas, area.
The sheriff said Escobedo's brother was involved in a heroin ring and is thought to be a fugitive in Mexico, but he said that case has no relation to the killings.
WEST PALM BEACH (AP) -- Authorities investigating the slaying of a family of four alongside a Florida highway said Friday that the father probably was involved in drug trafficking and that the suspected killer is in custody.
The suspect was among three men and a woman arrested Wednesday on drug charges who are "persons of interest" in the killings, St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara said. No one has been charged in the slayings.
The couple and their two young sons were found shot to death Oct. 13 off a desolate stretch of Florida's Turnpike near Port St. Lucie, about 50 miles north of their home in the Palm Beach County city of Greenacres.
Police searching the victims' home after the killings found evidence that the dead father, Jose Luis Escobedo, 28, had been involved in cocaine trafficking, Drug Enforcement Administration agent David Weeks said in court papers filed Friday. The items included "suspected drug ledgers" and plastic packaging used to wrap illegal narcotics.
Investigators linked the drug suspects to Escobedo through references in the ledgers that included detailed accounts of drug payments and debts owed, among other things, the DEA agent said.
A search of the West Palm Beach home where the three male suspects were living turned up suspected cocaine, ecstasy and drug packaging material, the agent said. Investigators also found more than a dozen guns, including an AK-47 assault rifle. The DEA agent did not say whether the weapons were used in the killings.
There also was a photograph of Escobedo with one of the suspects, Danny Varela, 26, according to court papers. The sheriff identified the other suspects as Liana Lopez, 18, Daniel Troya, 23, and Ricardo Sanchez, 23.
Mascara would not say which of the suspects is thought to have shot Escobedo, his 25-year-old wife, Yessica Guerrero Escobedo, and their sons, Luis Julian, 4, and Luis Damian, 3. But he told The Associated Press that it appeared those responsible for the killings were in custody.
The four suspects are charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
Another Man Arrested In Drug Case
A fifth man, Juan Gutierrez, was arrested and charged in the drug case, but he is not named as a person of interest in the slayings. According to court papers, he was cooperating with authorities and told them that he and Varela were at Escobedo's home before the killings and helped destroy drug packaging material.
Officials also cleared Michael James Naujalis of Lake Worth of involvement in the case. Naujalis was the last registered owner of a 1999 red Dodge conversion van that authorities think was involved in the slayings. Naujalis sold the van in August to Varela, but Varela never completed the transfer of title and ownership.
DEA spokeswoman Jeannette Moran said they made their initial appearances in federal court Friday in Fort Pierce. A bail hearing was set for Friday. All of the suspects have lengthy criminal records.
Lopez's attorney, Ronald Chapman, said Friday that he had just been assigned the case by the federal court and wasn't prepared to comment. Troya's attorney, Ruben Garcia, also said he had just been assigned the case.
'There May Be Homicide Charges'
"Indications are that there may be homicide charges filed," Garcia said Friday. "That's all I can tell you right now."
Phone messages left for the other suspects' attorneys were not immediately returned.
Mascara said the investigation of the deaths quickly led them to think this was a deliberate act on the family for drugs, money or both.
Investigators think the family's Jeep was pulled to the side of the highway between 1:30 and 3 a.m. and that someone inside the vehicle shot them and drove away. Authorities have said the victims appeared to be lying down or kneeling when they were shot. The woman was clutching her two sons in an apparent effort to protect them.
The Jeep was found abandoned in West Palm Beach three days later.
The family had moved to Florida in June from the Brownsville, Texas, area.
The sheriff said Escobedo's brother was involved in a heroin ring and is thought to be a fugitive in Mexico, but he said that case has no relation to the killings.
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