Victim identified in early morning Desert Hot Springs homicide

Desert Hot Springs police are investigating a man’s homicide Monday morning.

Officers were called to the 66200 block of 6th Street on a report of a body lying in the driveway at a home on the corner of Cactus Drive at about 6 a.m. When they arrived the man was deceased.

The man was identified as 21-year old Freddy Morales of Cathedral City, according to the county coroner’s office. It was unclear when Morales was fatally injured.

Morales’ death was determined to be a homicide, but police haven’t released any other details at this time. They haven’t said how he was killed and they are working with the coroner’s office. Officers said this is a problem area where police are often called to deal with similar incidents.

Officers said they patrol the area as much as possible.

Residents said this crime in their neighborhood worries them.

“So I don’t know what’s going on. Just in the past few months, it seems like there’s been a lot of gun shots and people are being found dead all over the city,” said Tony Daniels who lives in Desert Hot Springs.

This is the second homicide in Desert Hot Springs this year. A man has pleaded not guilty to murder charges in connection to the first homicide, which occurred February 28.

The Indio Police Department is also investigating a homicide that occurred over the weekend, where a 16-year-old victim was found dead outside of an apartment complex.

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