Double murder suspect formally charged
EDITOR'S NOTE: In a previous version of this story, we stated that Arellano was transferred to Community Bridges Inc., however, we were informed that he did not receive any inpatient care there or at any other CBI location.
David Leibowitz, a representative with Community Bridges Inc. sent us an email saying:
"In February 2024, CBI received paperwork regarding Arellano being admitted. We did follow up to have him transported from the Yuma Detention Center to a CBI in-patient location. At that time, CBI was told that Arellano had charges pending in Cochise County and that he would not be released to CBI. Instead, he would be transferred to Cochise County."
This article has now been corrected with the provided information.
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The Yuma man accused of killing an elderly couple inside their home was formally charged in court with two counts of first-degree murder.
19-year-old Romeo Jay Arellano was formally charged with six felonies, including first-degree murder, after prosecutors shared in court that he stabbed the victims to death in the area of Chico Lane and Avenue B.
"At this time, it is believed that the victims were murdered inside their home," stated Tania Pavlak, Yuma County Sheriff's Office Public Affairs Specialist.
Deputies first thought they were responding to a burglary and two missing people.
"The reporting party was a family member of the Marquez[es]," shared Pavlak.
The family member even went inside the home.
"They were not able to locate them at that time that is why they were reported hence missing at that time," said Pavlak. "They weren't found until deputies were able to be on scene and do a search of the property.”
82-year-old Manuel Marquez and 79-year-old Patricia Marquez were killed in their home.
According to court documents, the murders happened between April 26 and 27, at least five days before deputies found the bodies.
In court, a victim representative shared a statement from the victim’s daughter requesting for there to be no bail and stated that the whole family was scared of him as this was not his first run-in with the law.
"The suspect does have a criminal record, the Yuma County Sheriff's Office did arrest him for a burglary in that same street," said Pavlak.
Back in September 2022, Arellano was found guilty of "attempted unlawful use of means of transportation," a felony.
He was originally formally charged with three felonies, including theft after he stole a neighbor's suburban.
He was sentenced for that crime to 36 months of probation starting in December 2022, and three months later, he was formally charged with burglary in Somerton.
In May 2023, a motion was filed for an examination of Arellano to determine if he had a mental illness.
Earlier this year, the court found him "incompetent to stand trial."
According to court documents, Arellano was ordered to be transferred to Community Bridges Inc. (CBI), but that never happened.
David Leibowitz, a representative with Community Bridges Inc. sent us an email saying:
"In February 2024, CBI received paperwork regarding Arellano being admitted. We did follow up to have him transported from the Yuma Detention Center to a CBI in-patient location. At that time, CBI was told that Arellano had charges pending in Cochise County and that he would not be released to CBI. Instead, he would be transferred to Cochise County."
David Leibowitz
According to court documents, he was living right across the street from where the murders took place.
"The suspect was arrested after a search warrant was issued for his home," stated Pavlak.
Arellano is scheduled to be back in court next week and is currently being held on a $1 million cash-only bond at the Yuma County Detention Center.
