Salinas PD: Man already in custody identified as suspect in Fremont Street homicide
Salinas police have reportedly identified a man already in custody as the primary suspect in a fatal shooting on Fremont Street back in July of 2021.
Officers had responded to the 500 block of Fremont Street on the night of July 19, 2021, to investigate reports of gunfire and found 25-year-old Nelson Leonardo Sanchez-Ruiz suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was ultimately pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
Detectives assumed the investigation but information on the suspect was limited: an unknown man who had reportedly been seen running westbound on Fremont Street immediately after the shots were fired.
Over the course of a year of following up on leads, detectives identified the suspect as 25-year-old Josias Angel Alexis Abarca.
It turned out that Abarca was already in custody at the Monterey County Jail on an unrelated charge. Following his identification as the shooting suspect, he was re-booked on suspicion of murder.
