Four arrested for murder after fatal assault near Sonoma Plaza fountain
A 64-year-old man died days after being found unconscious near Sonoma Plaza's Italian Fountain. Four local residents now face murder charges in the city's first homicide in nearly four years.
Four Sonoma men held on murder charges after plaza assault kills 64-year-old
Four Sonoma residents have been arrested on suspicion of murder following the death of John Francis Avila, 64, who was found unconscious and critically injured near the Italian Fountain in Sonoma Plaza on the night of 7 September, sonomanews.com reports.
Avila died in the early hours of Sunday, 13 September — nearly a week after police responded to the plaza at around 10:30 p.m. following reports of an injured man near the fountain. He had been transported to a regional trauma centre in critical condition, with authorities confirming he had suffered significant head trauma.
The four suspects — Cristian Vargas Collado, 20; Augustine Rossi, 20; Thomas Griego, 21; and Anthony Kirk, 28 — were arrested without incident on Monday, 14 September. All four were being held without bail at the Sonoma County jail in Santa Rosa on suspicion of murder and conspiracy to commit murder as of Tuesday.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office had not yet filed formal charges.
Sonoma Police Chief Brandon Cutting confirmed on Tuesday that the killing marks the city's first homicide since he assumed leadership of the department in December 2022.
Investigators from the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office determined that Avila was likely the victim of an assault and that the four men were suspected of inflicting the injuries that led to his death. Detectives reviewed surveillance footage from the area, conducted witness interviews, and examined physical evidence. Authorities also used data from the city's automated licence plate reader cameras to identify the suspects, though officials did not specify what information the cameras captured or how it pointed investigators toward the four men.
At the time of the initial incident, authorities noted that several witnesses were believed to have been present but left before emergency personnel arrived.
Police have not disclosed how the assault occurred, whether Avila had any prior connection to the suspects, or what role each individual is alleged to have played.
The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information, video footage from the area, or other relevant evidence is asked to contact Sonoma police at 707-996-3601.
Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)