Second Suspect Charged In 2012 Indiana Double-Murder
VALPARAISO, Ind. (STMW) -- A new suspect has been charged in an April 2012 double-murder near Valparaiso, Ind.
Alejandro Sanchez, 21, of Hammond, Ind., was formally charged Monday by Porter County prosecutors. He is accused in the April 7, 2012 slayings of Jeffery Trinka and Jennifer Guinn at a home just west of the Valparaiso city limits.
Police previously charged Julius Jovan Garza, now 20, of Hammond, with the murders of Trinka, 40, of Valparaiso, and Guinn, 31, of Hammond.
When police arrived at the house, at 1558 W. Lincolnway, Garza was there, sitting in his vehicle.
He said he was "partying" with Trinka and Guinn but hid in a bedroom when someone knocked at the door. He said he heard an unknown man's voice, and then the shooting. According to police, Trinka was killed with a AK-47 and later was found hidden outside the house, which housed a marijuana-growing operation, according to police reports.
Guinn was shot with a .25-caliber pistol and was able to call 911, but she died at the hospital.
Garza, who identified himself as a member of the Chicago-based Two Six gang, was arrested April 10, 2012.
His trial originally was scheduled for Sept. 17, 2012. However, the defense received a six-month delay, followed by another six-month delay requested by the prosecution.
As of Monday, Garza still was being held at the Porter County Jail on those two murder charges.
Porter County Sheriff's Police had arrested Sanchez at 3 p.m. Friday and had held him at the Porter County Jail pending formal murder charges. A sheriff's department spokesman on Friday had declined to comment on Sanchez, saying only that details of his charges would be released Monday.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2013. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
