Clue emerges in mass murder at marijuana grow Site in Aguanga
New evidence has surfaced in a four-year-long investigation into the shooting deaths of seven foreign nationals who were connected to an illegal marijuana grow in Aguanga, authorities said today.
The two men and five women, who had emigrated from Laos, were gunned down on the night of Sept. 7, 2020, at a remote hillside property in the 45000 block of Highway 371.
According to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, homicide detectives have continued working the case, developing various leads.
Sgt. Jarred Bishop said that recently, the investigative team "identified one of the suspect vehicles used in this incident ... a mid-size dark-colored SUV."
No other details were available.
Bishop reiterated what Sheriff Chad Bianco suggested immediately after the killings, that the deadly home invasion "was a targeted incident," which in this case involved "gang members of Laotian descent from the San Diego area."
No one has been arrested.
The property where the victims resided contained more than 1,000 pounds of processed marijuana valued between $1 million and $5 million, Bianco said at the time.
He said roughly 20 people had been residing at the illegal grow site.
Patrol deputies were called there to investigate an assault and discovered the seven victims in and around a small dwelling.
The men were ultimately identified as Khamphour Nanthavongdovane, 53, and Vikham Silimanotham, 64. The women were identified as Phone Chankhamany, 54, Khamtoune Silimanotham, 59, Souphanh Pienthiene, 48, Thongpath Luangkoth, 47, and Samantha Sourignasak, 44.
They had all been shot to death.
"It was an obvious illegal marijuana processing center,'' Bianco later told reporters. "Not a small operation, but a major organized crime type operation.''
In 2020, there were nearly a dozen deadly attacks at illegal indoor and outdoor grows countywide, including the one along Highway 371.
Anyone with information about the SUV, or any other details relevant to the investigation, was asked to contact the Central Homicide Unit at 951-955-2777.
