Prosecutors announced Friday that they will seek the executions of three more men accused of committing several kidnappings and killings in San Diego County on behalf of a criminal organization called Los Palillos.
Four defendants in the case now face the death penalty, if convicted.
Juan Francisco Estrada-Gonzalez, 31, Edgar Frausto Lopez, 36, and Jorge Salvador Moreno, 40, have each pleaded not guilty to felony charges including murder and kidnapping for ransom.
Two weeks ago, prosecutors said they would seek the death penalty for Jorge Rojas Lopez, 31, who has pleaded not guilty to similar charges.
Rojas and Estrada-Gonzalez already have kidnapping convictions from a 2008 raid on a Chula Vista home where a businessman was held for eight days. They each were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Authorities contend that Los Palillos, Spanish for “toothpicks,” is responsible for at least nine local killings between 2004 and 2007 and had been known to target some victims with ties to the notorious Arellano-Felix cartel.
District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis announced last year that 17 people had been indicted in the case, nine of whom were in custody. Since then, two men have pleaded guilty to felony charges.
One of them, Jesus Lopez Becerra, 32, pleaded guilty Thursday to murder, kidnapping and robbery charges and is expected to be sentenced to life in prison without parole.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...alty-4-defend/
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