Police: Cathedral City man accused of murdering roommate also killed two pets
The man accused of murdering his roommate at a Cathedral City apartment complex is also believed to have killed two pets, police said on Wednesday.
The suspect, a 39-year-old man, Tuesday at around 1 a.m. after his roommate was found dead in his bed at the Cathedral Town Villas Apartments on the 36700 block of Pickfair Street, which is right next to the police headquarters.
Authorities said medics were called to the area on Monday at around 10:30 p.m. The victim was found with trauma to his head and neck area. He was pronounced dead at the scene. His identity has not been released as of Wednesday afternoon.
“They went in and come back down, asked where is the guy that lives here and I had to go get him. He was outside trying to run when he got to put him back. So we weren't going to where to find out what's going on," the neighbor said.
On Wednesday, detectives met with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office to review the homicide investigation. After a lengthy review the district attorney’s office accepted the case and will be filing first-degree murder charges and animal abuse/cruelty charges, police announced.
Police added that the suspect is believed to have also been directly involved in the death of two pets found in the apartment.
The suspect has not been officially charged yet. He is scheduled to be arraigned in court on Thursday. He is currently being held at the John Benoit Detention Center in Indio on $1 million bail.
Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing updates on this case.
