Police Build Case Against 2 in Triple Homicide
ONTARIO – Now that the second suspect in a Nov. 26 triple homicide has pleaded not guilty to murder, police are gradually building a case against three possible suspects in last week’s crime.
Michael Andre Hall, 23, appeared Tuesday in West Valley Superior Court. Judge Cara D. Hutson entered Hall’s not guilty plea to three counts of murder, along with gun and gang allegations.
Hall was arrested last Friday at his residence in the 1000 block of West Springfield St. in Upland, a neighboring city of Ontario.
Four days earlier, police reported that a body had been discovered in the driveway in the 1000 block of South Magnolia Ave. When police arrived, they discovered two more bodies in a separate home at the rear of the property.
Police believe that Hall, Aaron Andrews, 25, Albert Lamar Thomas, 25, and Steven Carter, 34, went to rob Brandon Perez, 31, at the Magnolia Ave. residence. In an early morning gun battle, Perez and two of the suspected robbers, Andrews and Thomas, were killed.
Police said residents, some of whom have reported problems in the neighborhood, heard shooting just before 2 a.m. Some of those residents apparently dismissed the gunshots as fireworks. The first body was discovered at 6:15 a.m.
Carter was arrested the day after the shooting, pleading not guilty to the same charges Hall faced on Monday. Police say motive for the robbery and murder appears to be drugs and weapons. A cache of marijuana was discovered, along with weapons – a shotgun and rifle – and drug cultivation equipment.
A county official said suspects can get 50 years to life on each count. Hall remains in West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga on $5.5 million bail.
Read More:
Daily Bulletin: Funeral set for victim of Ontario triple homicide
The Sun: Second suspect in Ontario triple homicide pleads not guilty
KABC: Second man arrested in Ontario triple murder
CrimeVoice: Ontario Police still investigating a triple murder