Trial date confirmed for one of two suspects in Cathedral City homicide

A judge today confirmed an upcoming trial date for one of two men accused of killing a 24-year-old man in Cathedral City in 2020.   

Johnny Ramirez, 31, of Escondido in San Diego County, was charged with a count of murder and a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a weapon during a felony, according to court records.

He initially pleaded not guilty on Aug. 10, 2023, at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.  

Ramirez's trial is set to begin on Dec. 2, according to case records.

One week after Ramirez's arraignment, Judge Gregory J. Olson filed a declaration in support of the arrest warrant of co-defendant Edgar Navez of Desert Hot Springs, who was 31 at the time. Navez -- still the subject of the active warrant -- was scheduled to be charged with the same felony count and enhancement.  

Officers responded shortly before 7 p.m. Nov. 23, 2020, to a report of a man down in the area of Avenida Del Yermo and Ramon Road, according to a statement from the Cathedral City Police Department. Upon arrival, officers found Ricardo Gallardo of Cathedral City injured.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit filed by Det. Sgt. Nate Hanley, Gallardo was found with multiple stab wounds to his abdomen area.

Gallardo was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, where he died, Hanley said. A homicide investigation began and by August 2023, it was presented to the Riverside County District Attorney's office.

"The Riverside County District Attorney's office filed the case with the Superior Court of Riverside and two arrest warrants were issued for the arrest of the suspects in this case,'' the statement said. "Through the
investigation, CCPD detectives were able to identify the two homicide suspects as (Ramirez and Navez)."

According to a declaration in support of the arrest warrant, an employee working at a business across the street from the altercation heard the commotion and immediately called to check on his father, who was nearby, before checking the cameras and seeing two suspects running on Avenida Del Yermo, past his business, and toward Aliso Road.

The employee then walked out to the street to see what happened and saw a group of people where Gallardo was on the ground, according to Hanley. He also saw a black phone on the sidewalk in front of the business where the two suspects were seen running.

CCPD staff reported finding an additional video from Palm Springs Pet Control, which caught the suspects chasing down, catching and attacking Gallardo before fleeing the scene. A search warrant for the phone determined it belonged to Navez.

In the cell phone, officers found a video that allegedly showed Ramirez driving a vehicle with Navez in the passenger seat eight minutes prior to the homicide, according to the statement. Other videos also allegedly showed Navez and Ramirez posing with handguns and flashing gang signs.

Ramirez was found and arrested Aug. 8 in Escondido, in northern San Diego County, according to the statement. Navez, who is described as a 5-foot-10-inch man weighing 160 pounds with black hair and brown eyes, had a $1 million warrant for his arrest.

According to inmate records, Ramirez was booked into the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta, where he remains held on $1 million bail.