EL CENTRO â A 21-year-old murder suspect remained at large Saturday night after he was released in error from the Imperial County Jail Friday.
Imperial County Sheriffâs Office said Athan Emmanuel Estrada was released from the jail at 8 p.m. after he assumed the identity of another inmate.
Estrada was arrested by El Centro Police Wednesday in a domestic violence incident. He was later charged separately for murder as the suspect in a June 7 shooting at the Crown Motel, 330 N. Imperial Ave. That shooting reportedly led to the death of 28-year-old Pablo Dominguez, of El Centro.
ICSO said in a release it is already investigating how the error occurred and has already conducted multiple interviews to uncover exactly what transpired Friday. In addition, an administrative investigation is also underway.
EL CENTRO â Imperial County Sheriffâs Office announced Thursday it has identified 15 suspects with alleged connections to a crime ring believed to be responsible for at least 16 local burglaries over the past two years.
ICSO said their investigation started in March 2021, when investigators conducted a traffic stop on person driving an off highway vehicle (OHV) that was later identified as stolen.
The suspect provided ICSO information apparently related to other crimes and other persons, who provided valuable information to the Sheriffâs Investigation Division, the Sheriffâs Office said.
The information obtained from these individuals led to several open criminal investigations that occurred throughout the county in the past two years, ICSO said.