Jury selection starts for trial of man accused of killing 93-year-old woman
INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) - Jury selection got underway today for the trial of a pool serviceman accused of fatally beating a 93-year-old Palm Desert woman during a robbery.
Benjamin Cabrera Briones, 62, of Thousand Palms is charged with first- degree murder, burglary, forgery and special-circumstance allegations of killing in the course of a robbery and murder for financial gain.
Briones allegedly killed Jean Grace Willrich in 2021.
Pretrial motions in the case concluded Thursday, and on Friday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Anthony Villalobos selected a pool of prospective jurors for screening as to their availability and qualifications to hear the matter.
The judge ordered the prospects to return to the Larson Justice Center in Indio on Tuesday. Briones is being held without bail at the Benoit Detention Center.
If convicted, the defendant faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.
During a 2023 preliminary hearing, sheriff's investigators established that Briones, an independent pool cleaner and handyman, had worked for Willrich, but she terminated his contract several years earlier over a disagreement about his compensation.
On the afternoon of Nov. 29, 2021, the defendant went to Willrich's property in the 77000 block of Michigan Drive, ostensibly to see if he could repair one of her toilets
Sheriff's Investigator Gustavo Castaneda alleged that detectives later learned from interviews with Briones that he never intended to provide a service, but rather wanted to commit theft.
"Mr. Briones stated Ms. Willrich let him in and eventually, when he started looking around, a confrontation started, and that's when he proceeded to assault Ms. Willrich,'' Castaneda testified during the preliminary hearing. "Mr. Briones explained to us how he punched her, choked her and eventually got on top of her. He continued to punch her, hit her with both open and closed fists because she wouldn't stop screaming. When she stopped moving, he got up and grabbed (her) checks and left.''
When the victim's regular pool serviceman showed up the following day, he noticed things askew, including windows with blinds wide open and a hose running, causing an overflow on the east side of the house. He became concerned and attempted to make contact with Willrich, and when he couldn't, he notified authorities.
Deputies conducted a welfare check at the home, locating the victim dead inside, exhibiting obvious signs of trauma.
Detectives soon confirmed that property had been taken, and that one of Willrich's checks had been deposited at an ATM outside an Albertson's grocery in Palm Desert, according to sheriff's officials.
Security surveillance video images were examined, and authorities identified Briones as the person who cashed the check, Castaneda alleged. He said that security videotape from homes around the victim's property showed that the defendant had also parked there, gone inside and returned to his pickup a short time later on Nov. 29.
Briones was arrested without incident on Dec. 3, 2021, during a traffic stop near Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra drives in Rancho Mirage.
He has no documented prior felony convictions recorded in Riverside County.
