Two teenagers arrested in March in connection with back-to-back shootings in Chula Vista that left one person dead and two others wounded — crimes described by prosecutors as “violent and premeditated” — will now face federal charges, state prosecutors said Monday.
The shootings were linked to Mexican drug cartels and involved a drug cell embroiled in a violent dispute with its rivals in Baja California, according to sources with knowledge of cartel activity and the ongoing investigations.
The 15-year-old suspects were originally charged by the county District Attorney’s Office with murder, attempted murder involving firearms, and other undisclosed felonies, officials said. But on Monday, state prosecutors asked a judge in Juvenile Court to dismiss the charges against the teens — whose names have not been released because they are minors — and then referred the case to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“It is imperative that minors committing murders and other serious and violent crimes understand they will not escape accountability,” District Attorney Summer Stephan said in a statement. “There’s a growing public safety concern that adult criminals are enticing minors to commit violent crimes with assurances that they will escape accountability due to California’s state juvenile laws.
“The referral for federal prosecution in this case aims to stop the recruitment of minors to execute violent crimes,” she added.
The judge accepted the motion to dismiss the charges and to transfer the case to federal court. Neither the media nor the public were allowed into the courtroom.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego did not respond to questions regarding the case. It is unclear what federal charges the two minors may face. Their custody status was unclear after the hearing.
Murder is typically prosecuted in state court but can be charged as a federal crime in specific circumstances, including murder for hire or murder committed by the use of a firearm during a drug-trafficking crime.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District has a long and distinguished expertise and history in successfully prosecuting crimes of this nature,” the District Attorney’s Office said in a news release, “and the U.S. Attorney is fully committed to keeping our region safe, further supporting the decision to defer prosecution to their office.”
The two teenagers are believed to be involved in two shootings that occurred hours apart — the first on the night of March 26 outside a Chili’s restaurant in a strip mall parking lot at East H Street and Paseo del Rey.
That shooting wounded James Bryant Corona, an alleged drug cell leader with dual U.S.-Mexican citizenship, according to sources on both sides of the border with knowledge of the investigation. Corona, also known as “El Apache,” has been described by Mexican officials as “one of the main generators of violence” in Tijuana and Baja California and linked to a remnant cell of the Arellano Félix Organization, a cartel that once dominated Tijuana.
The second shooting happened early March 27 at the Salerno Luxury Rentals apartment complex in Otay Ranch, leaving one person dead and a 24-year-old man with a gunshot wound to his face, according to Chula Vista police.
Neither Chula Vista police nor the county Medical Examiner’s Office has released the identity of the deceased victim.
The District Attorney’s Office said it has worked closely with federal and local agencies to continue to investigate the case and to reduce the threat of violent crime in the community.
There have been no arrests announced in connection with a previous shooting in the county that is believed to be tied to the same cartel dispute. In February, Christian Espinoza Silver, 35, a reputed member of the same drug cell, was gunned down in a BMW near the parking garage of a luxury University City apartment complex.
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