Valley Family Seeks Answers In Murder Of Shane Ayala

We spoke with the family of a young Palm Springs man whose remains were found in the desert three months after his disappearance.

Police say 21-year-old Shane Ayala was shot to death in August of last year.

Ayala was reported missing in September. On Dec. 19, a hiker found his remains in Sky Valley. Arnold Ayala, Shane’s father, said that was the last time he would ever see his son.

“It was a little hard. There was nothing left of him,” said the victim?s father.

Police arrested 26-year-old Andrew Michael De Los Santos in Palm Desert last Thursday in connection with the murder. De Los Santos was arraigned Tuesday and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Authorities also say 36-year-old Luis Raul Diaz is facing charges for his connection in the case. Diaz is already in custody in state prison on unrelated charges.

There has been no word yet on a motive for the kidnapping and murder of Ayala. His family said he wasn’t involved in a gang and hopes the arrests will bring them some answers as to what led to his murder.

“We’re going to have our answers, but it’s still going to be hard. Justice needs to be served,” said Linette Ochoa, the victim?s aunt.

The victim?s sister, Chastity Mills, said she went to Cathedral City High School with De Los Santos but questions her brother?s connection with the two suspects.

“I do have times where I look and I cry. It’s hard to not hear his voice,” said Mills, as she held pictures of her younger brother.

Now only able to see his face through pictures, they hold onto the memories Ayala left behind.

“He loved skating, skateboarding, hiking, and biking. He was a very loveable person,” said the victim?s father.

“He always had this beautiful smile on his face all of the time. If you were upset and he had seen it, you weren’t anymore, not if he was around,” said Ochoa.

After De Los Santos was arrested last week, Ayala’s family and friends came together in Sky Valley to put up two crosses in his memory — near where his body was found.

“It’s amazing that we got to bury him, because so many people don’t have that closure, they spend their lives waiting and looking,” said Ochoa.

Family members said they’re looking to petition the district attorney to pursue the death penalty for the men they believe killed Ayala.