3 inmates accused in deadly jail assault, including Salinas double homicide suspect
By Felix Cortez
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SALINAS, California (KSBW) — An inmate in Monterey County Jail awaiting trial for murder charges is now facing new murder charges after deputies say he and two other inmates killed another inmate during a deadly assault.
One of the suspected killers was already in custody for allegedly shooting three people in Salinas, leaving two of them dead.
A 30-year-old Hayward man, identified as Abraham Camacho, was found unresponsive inside his jail cell Sunday morning during a safety check.
“Once they located him, they were able to pull him out and immediately start life-saving efforts,” said Monterey County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Andres Rosas.
“This individual tragically succumbed to their injuries and was pronounced deceased there at the Monterey County Jail,” Rosas said.
The cause and nature of death are to be determined by the Santa Cruz County coroner, which is conducting the autopsy on behalf of Monterey County. Sheriff’s deputies say three fellow inmates are to blame for the deadly assault: Romeo Gonzales, 21; Elijah Herrera, 20; and Marwuy Camacho, 19. Camacho was in custody awaiting trial for allegedly shooting three people in Salinas last year, killing two of them.
“All three of those individuals have been charged with or have been booked for murder, as well as gang enhancements and conspiracy charges,” Rosas said.
Key in this jailhouse murder will be surveillance video inside the jail to see if it captured the murder and what deputies may or may not have seen.
“This investigation has a lot of parts to it,” Rosas said. “The primary goal here is to try and determine who caused these fatal injuries to Mr. Camacho.”
“But this investigation goes beyond that. It will look at different facets of what happened here, including making sure that our employees were doing what was expected of them at that time,” Rosas said.
The sheriff’s office has not released why the victim was in custody at the county jail, but his alleged attackers are now charged with murder, gang conspiracy, and enhancements.
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