Indio man accused of killing family member, injured two others pleads not guilty to murder
A 34-year-old man suspected of stabbing three of his family members, one fatally, following a dispute in Indio, pleaded not guilty to murder today.
In addition to the murder charge, Anthony William Piña-German of Indio was charged with two felony counts of attempted murder, according to court records. He also faces sentence-enhancing allegations of using a weapon during a felony and causing great bodily injury.
He pleaded not guilty to all charges at the Larson Justice Center in Indio on Wednesday afternoon.
At around 6:50 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to the 82900 block of Via Venecia to a family disturbance, and three unidentified men were found with stab wounds, according to Ben Guitron of the Indio Police Department.
Guitron said the victims and Piña-German were in a dispute before the stabbing occurred. The three men were taken to a hospital, where one of them died. Guitron said a second victim was in critical but stable condition, and the other was in stable condition.
Piña-German allegedly left the scene before officers arrived.
Based on the circumstances, police investigated the stabbing as a homicide in conjunction with the Riverside County coroner's office, Guitron said.
Piña-German was subsequently found and arrested in El Centro on Sunday morning. He was booked into the John J. Benoit Detention Center in Indio, where he was being held on $1 million bail.
Anyone with information about the case was asked to call the Indio Police Department at 760-391-4051 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 760-341-7867 (STOP).
