Suspect in Riverside murder arrested in Mexico after 19 years

Authorities recently apprehended a Riverside murder suspect after he was on the run in Mexico for 19 years.

On July 8, 51-year-old Luis Contreras was apprehended by Mexican authorities in Mexicali in coordination with the U.S. Marshals El Centro Fugitive Task Force. Contreras was later transferred and booked into the Riverside County sheriff’s Cois M. Byrd Detention Center while formal charges are pending.

At approximately 7:30 p.m. on June 14, 2005, police responded to a call of shots fired with a person down inside a residence in the 4700 block of Doane Avenue, according to the Riverside Police Department. When officers arrived, they found Alfonso Vera, 38, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Vera was pronounced dead at the scene.

Witnesses at the time reported hearing the gunshots at Vera’s home and observed people running, then two vehicles fleeing from the scene, police said. A license plate number from one of the vehicles was obtained.

A Riverside police investigation determined one of the suspects was involved in an argument with his girlfriend that escalated to the man hitting her.

“Vera intervened to protect the woman and was shot several times by another suspect,” according to a Riverside PD statement. “The shooter who killed Vera was later identified as 32-year-old Luis Contreras.”

Riverside police arrested two of the three alleged suspects a couple weeks following the murder.

“One suspect was charged with accessory to murder and received a three-year prison sentence, while charges were not filed on the second suspect due to lack of evidence,” the RPD reported.

Investigators believed Contreras fled to Mexico, and in July 2005 an arrest warrant was issued. His whereabouts, however, remained unknown for nearly two ensuing decades.

Bent on finding and arresting Contreras, Riverside police reopened the murder investigation in June and coordinated efforts with U.S. Marshals based on the Mexican border.

Anyone with information on the case should contact the Homicide Cold Case Unit at 951-320-8000 or HomicideColdCase@RiversideCA.gov.