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A week after authorities allege a man was beaten to death at a San Juan stash house before being buried in a barrel in Edinburg, three of the suspects in the case violently robbed a woman in Mercedes they accused of stealing iPhones.
A probable cause affidavit for 35-year-old Mission resident Roberto Salas — who was arrested on warrants for murder and aggravated robbery over the weekend — indicates that he, Jesus Grijalva, 43, of San Juan, and Alejandro Cantu, 29, of Mercedes, robbed the woman at gunpoint and hit her on the head with a black handgun on May 14.
Grijalva and Salas are charged along with Samuel Uvalle Sr., 47, of Mission, for the early morning May 7 murder of Juan Carlos Hernandez de Leon, who went missing on May 6, at a stash house in San Juan located at 1913 Morningset Rd.
Cantu is charged with tampering with evidence with the intent to impair a human corpse in the case.
Hernandez’s body was moved from the San Juan stash house, placed in a barrel and buried on a property in Edinburg at 4610 E. Wisconsin Rd.
Monica Victoria Gomez, 41, of San Juan, is also charged with tampering with the intent to impair a human corpse in the case. She had also been charged with murder and smuggling of persons, but jail records indicate those charges were dismissed. It’s not immediately clear why.
Following the murder, the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office said in the affidavit that deputies responded to a residence in rural Mercedes and interviewed the woman who was robbed.
“She saw a white SUV arrived to location. She saw three men exit the white SUV,” the affidavit stated. “She recognized Alejandro Cantu and ‘Joker’ (Jesus Grijalva). The third man she does not know his name. The third man was holding a black handgun.”
The men then started accusing her of stealing iPhones, according to the affidavit.
“Alejandro held her down in the bed. Joker took out a black handgun and was pointing it at her. … Joker then hit her on the top of her head with the black handgun. She started bleeding and felt the blood dripping down her shoulder. Joker, Alejandro, and the other guy left location with her red purse,” the affidavit stated.
The responding deputy observed blood on her head that dripped down her neck and was consistent with an assault.
While showing the woman photo lineups, the woman identified Cantu and Grijalva. She also told the investigator that she saw the third man — Salas — in the news media.
At the time, investigators had released his mugshot to Valley media asking for the public’s assistance in finding the man.
Grijalva has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and remains held in the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center on a total of $1,220,000 in bonds.
Salas remains jailed on $6 million on bonds.
Cantu, who was released from the county jail on July 19 on $75,000 in bonds, has a warrant for his arrest after failing to appear at a Sept. 30 hearing, court records indicate. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Gomez remains jailed on a $1 million bond on the tampering charge and has pleaded not guilty.
