Police estimate 50 to 70 witnessed murders
Police are still looking for the suspects who gunned down two Santa Monica men in March, as family members of the victims continue to have a difficult time recovering from the loss.
Hector Bonilla, 25, and Jonathan Hernandez, 19, were shot multiple times on March 5 at a birthday party held at the Moose Lodge at 16th Street and Ocean Park Boulevard. The killings took place in front of between 50 and 70 witnesses, according to police. The investigation is still ongoing, but family members said solving the case can’t come soon enough.
Those in attendance at the party were questioned by police shortly after the 11 p.m. shooting. It’s not known how much information they’ve provided to police. However, Santa Monica Police Lt. Frank Fabrega, a SMPD spokesperson, didn’t comment on where leads in the investigation have led detectives.
“Because the investigation is ongoing, we are not releasing information that would jeopardize the investigation at this point,” Fabrega said. “Our detectives are still following up on some leads.”
A reward hasn’t been offered for information leading to an arrest.
City Hall offered a $25,000 reward for the murder of Jalonnie Carter, who was shot in the back in 2003, nine months after his murder remained unsolved. A suspect is in custody, although it’s unknown whether a tip related to the reward led to an arrest.
SMPD officials didn’t say if they planned to offer a reward to solve the Hernandez-Bonilla case. However, anyone who has information about the crime is encouraged to contact the Santa Monica Police Department at (310) 458-8491. Callers who wish to remain anonymous also can call the We-Tip national hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME (27463), which may lead to a reward.
Santa Monica City Councilman Richard Bloom said he has supported offering rewards to solve crimes in the past. He believes rewards can be helpful, especially when police run out of leads.
“Frankly, I don’t know that’s the case with this investigation,” Bloom said. “The work is time consuming. “Sometimes it’s long and frustrating for loved ones and the community.”
FAMILY STRUGGLES Krizna Ayala, Bonilla’s girlfriend and mother to their three children, said she called the SMPD regularly after the shooting, but stopped two months ago.
“Now I’m waiting for the police to call me,” she said, adding that she hopes detectives will call her soon with more information about her boyfriend’s murder.
Ayala said community donations helped pay for Hernandez and Bonilla’s funeral services. However, Ayala, a full-time business student at Santa Monica College, has-n’t been able to afford her home in the wake of the murder because Bonilla was the primary provider for the family. She and the children have moved into her mother’s house, located in Santa Monica, which they share with Ayala’s mother, three of Ayala’s siblings and a dog.
“I sleep in my mother’s living room with my three kids,” Ayala said.
Ayala said she is living off of Social Security. Neither she nor her children — Hector, 8, Benjamin, 3, and Eliaz, 1 — have received counseling since the shootings.
“They tell me I ought to go to counseling, but I haven’t,” she said. “I have a lot on my mind, like trying to find a place to live.”
Ayala said her children miss their father and talk about him everyday. They are beginning to understand he is not coming back.
“My youngest is doing better,” she said. “He is having a hard time because he was really used to his father being around.
“Mentally, I keep them OK. They don’t see the pain I’m going through.”
“It is an active investigation with active leads,”
“It is a case we expect to solve.”
Natalie Preciado, mother of Hernandez, said she has been a “mess” since the shootings and fears for her safety.
“I don’t feel comfortable in Santa Monica, I can’t sleep, and I’m afraid,” Preciado said. “I have received harassing phone calls with people saying, ‘Ha ha, Jon is dead.’”
Preciado said she wants to move, largely due to the frustration she has felt in waiting for the murder to be solved.
“I find it hard to believe with 50 to 70 witnesses at the murder scene, there have been no convictions,” Preciado said. “It makes me wonder if the police are doing their job, or just eating donuts.”
EXPERTS WEIGH IN ON CASE It’s unlcear whether or not the homicides were gang related; however, witnesses aren’t providing much information in the investigation.
Witnesses said Hernandez got into a physical altercation with two or three men near the front entrance to the Moose Lodge, a Sunset Park venue often used for weddings, birthdays and other events.
Guests at the party said as many as 14 shots were fired by two or three suspects, who opened fire on Hernandez and later turned their barrels on Bonilla, a longtime friend of Hernandez who attempted to intervene.
The suspects, who fled the scene, are described as two Hispanic men, between 18 and 20 years old, who were wearing dark, hooded sweatshirts.
Gil P. Quinonez, a retired officer with the Long Beach Police Department, said gang-related homicides can be extremely difficult to solve, largely because witnesses often fear retribution from gang members, so they don’t talk.
“The hardest thing for police to do is get a witness who will stand in court, because witnesses lose all around,” Quinonez said.
Quinonez said the system doesn’t make it easy for witnesses to participate in the process, since they often have to make multiple court appearances before a case actually goes to trial. Meanwhile the witness, appearing in court, is being seen by the suspect’s family and friends, which may set him or her up later to be a victim.
In addition, witnesses often have families of their own and must take time off work or find babysitters when they make court appearances. They lose money trying to support the efforts of justice.
Quinonez said the picture is bleak when solving gang-related crimes and that detectives often have no choice but to hope a good citizen will come forward who witnessed the crime, and does not live near the crime scene.
Still, he said, timing is crucial in solving most homicide cases.
“Every day that goes by means the case will less likely be solved,” Quinonez said.
Some homicide experts noted the Hernandez-Bonilla case has a lot going for it.
John MacDonald, a Rand Corp. behavioral scientist, noted the SMPD did a good job securing the crime scene and interviewing witnesses immediately after the shooting, which he said is the foundation of a successful investigation.
“The police rounded up the witnesses at the scene, and they know the dynamics of the altercation,” MacDonald said. “They have the forensic evidence.
“I find it highly unlikely, out of that many witnesses, somebody wouldn’t be aware of who the perpetrators were.”
“I find it highly unlikely, out of that many witnesses, somebody wouldn’t be aware of who the perpetrators were.” — Chief James T. Butts Jr. said he is optimistic the suspects will be found and brought to justice. Butts said. - JOHN MACDONALD Rand Corp. behavioral scientist
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 13, 2005. Read the original PDF.