Stacey Xanthe Aguilar, a 22-year-old woman from San Jose, California, was tragically found dead on February 20, 2016. Her body was discovered in a rural area of Fremont, riddled with multiple gunshot wounds. Aguilar had been last seen leaving a party in Hayward on February 13, 2016. The investigation revealed that she was shot several times in Hayward before her body was dumped off Morrison Canyon Road in Fremont.
The Alameda County Coroner's Bureau conducted an autopsy to determine the official cause of death, which confirmed the fatal gunshot wounds.
The investigation into Aguilar's death quickly led to the arrest of her boyfriend, Esmid Valentine Pedraza, who was charged with her murder. According to court documents, Pedraza, Aguilar, and a friend, Donato Dejesus Perez, attended a house party on Silva Avenue in Hayward. Around 1 a.m., Pedraza and Aguilar went out to Pedraza's car, where Perez later heard several gunshots. Perez found Pedraza holding a gun and Aguilar dead in the car. Pedraza then enlisted Perez's help to dispose of Aguilar's body by rolling it down a hill on Morrison Canyon Road.
Pedraza was formally charged with murder by the Alameda County District Attorney's Office and was arraigned without bail. Perez was also charged as an accessory to murder, with bail set at $500,000. The case against Pedraza and Perez highlighted the tragic circumstances of Aguilar's death and the swift action taken by law enforcement to bring those responsible to justice. The community was left in shock and mourning, as Aguilar's family and friends grappled with the loss of a young woman whose life was cut short by violence.
