A judge dismissed an indictment against a 32-year-old Mission man who had been accused of participating in a drug theft a day after Christmas in 2015 that resulted in two killings.
Javier Mendez Rodriguez was released from the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center on Thursday, records show.
The sheriff’s office alleged Rodriguez was one of five men who tried to steal marijuana from 24-year-old Rodriguez Villanueva Alvarez. The robbery happened in the 6100 block of Dario Street in rural Mission on Dec. 26, 2015 and resulted in Alvarez’ death and the death of 43-year-old Juan Carmorlinga Torres, who was one of the alleged robbers.
A confrontation during the incident resulted in gunfire and sheriff’s deputies found their bodies on the back of the property.
As for the dismissal, the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office filed a motion seeking to dismiss it because prosecutors elected not to proceed at this time with the case against Rodriguez, who can be indicted on the charges again.
State District Judge Letty Lopez granted the motion Wednesday afternoon, records show.
Rodriguez was not arrested until 2017, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection encountered him at the Hidalgo-Reynosa International Bridge and discovered that he had a warrant.
Another suspect in the case, Alberto Ocañas Garcia, 43, was arrested for his alleged role in the fatal botched robbery in late October 2020.
Garcia has been indicted on a charge of capital murder of multiple persons and has pleaded not guilty. He remained jailed Thursday on a $2 million bond, records show.
The only suspect to be arrested in the months after the fatal shooting is 55-year-old Pharr resident Ramon Aguilar Jr.
Investigators arrested him in March 2016.
He pleaded guilty to murder in 2017 and is serving a 28-year prison sentence. He is eligible for parole in 2030.
The last remaining suspect is Guillermo Peña, who remains a fugitive.
