Brian Messina, 42, of Anza, California, was found dead November 29, 2020, in a remote area of Bautista Road. His death was the result of a severe beating and a fatal gunshot wound. Investigators say he was targeted by three people who suspected him of gathering evidence against them about armed thefts at illegal cannabis grows in the Anza Valley.

Joe Anthony Serna and Nico Manuel Zahir allegedly attacked Messina there; Zahir is reported to have struck him on the head multiple times with a handgun while Serna kicked him. After beating Messina into submission, the men forced him into a Toyota Tundra and drove him to a remote stretch of Bautista Road, where Zahir allegedly executed him with a shotgun. George Frank Holley Jr. is also named in the investigation.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department arrested Serna, Zahir and Holley. Serna was charged with first-degree murder, assault and a special-circumstance allegation of killing during a kidnapping; Zahir and Holley faced similar murder and kidnapping charges, and Zahir was additionally charged with firearm assault, making criminal threats and false imprisonment.

Did anyone in the Anza area see Brian or his truck around November 29, 2020, or have information about the confrontation on Howard Road?