1 Arrested, 1 Sought In Killings Of Alabama Men In Butte County
GRIDLEY (CBS13) — One man is in custody and another man is sought in connection to the murder of two Alabama men in the Gridley area, the Butte County Sheriff's Office announced Tuesday.
Ricardo Banuelos, Villarreal, 30, of Gridley, was arrested on November 14 at a residence in Yuba City. He was booked into the Butte County Jail where he faces two counts of murder. An arrest warrant for two murder charges was obtained for 35-year-old Alfredo Banuelos-Villarreal, also of Gridley. Multiple law enforcement agencies are actively searching for Alfredo, who can be seen in images below.
Both men are suspected of killing John Dubose, 20, and Ladexter Pelt, 25, and hiding their bodies, the sheriff's office said in a news release.
The sheriff's office said family members of both men contacted Gridley police and reported them both missing in November. On November 13, the sheriff's office joined Gridley police in the investigation.
Pelt and Bubose were determined to have flown to Sacramento and then traveled up to Butte County, where authorities say they had lost contact with family.
Over the course of the investigation, detectives located evidence leading them to believe Pelt and Dubose were murdered at a residence in the Gridley area, the sheriff's office said. More evidence led detectives to identify both of the suspects.
According to the Butte County Sheriff's Office, several people have been interviewed over the past three weeks in Gridley, Marysville, Yuba City, Sacramento, the Bay Area and Los Angeles, in addition to friends and family of the two men killed. Anyone who has interacted or had contact with either suspect over the past three months is asked to contact the sheriff's office.
Additional evidence was provided to investigators that pointed to Pelt and Dubose's lives ending shortly after their arrival in Butte County, the sheriff's office said. Their bodies have not yet been located.
In the search for Alfredo, investigators said they are also searching for a 2008 Nissan Altima with a California license plate number: 6VAR204.