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UPDATE: News story from Kearney Hub Web Site
'97 Lex murder involved illegal papers
By HARRY G. PERKINS
Hub Regional Correspondent
LEXINGTON - A suspect in a 6½-year-old murder case has been bound over to Dawson County District Court for trial.
Samuel Arevalo-Martinez, 45, accused of murder in the death of Antonio Zavala-Ruiz in 1997, was bound over Thursday. Investigators believe a dispute about false identification documents was the motive for the murder.
Arevalo-Martinez faces Class I and IA felony charges of first-degree murder. Dawson County Attorney Elizabeth Waterman said if Arevalo-Martinez is convicted, the jury will decide if he is to be sentenced to death, the penalty for the Class I felony, or to life imprisonment, the lesser Class IA felony.
One of the requirements for the death penalty is premeditation. Waterman contends that because Arevalo-Martinez is alleged to have kidnapped Zavala-Ruiz, the requirement of premeditation is satisfied.
Lexington Police Department Investigator Kenneth Schumacher testified Thursday that people who knew Zavala-Ruiz said he was selling false identification documents, including birth certificates and Social Security cards.
He said investigators think hard feelings developed between Zavala-Ruiz and Arevalo-Martinez when documents purchased by Arevalo-Martinez for his wife were unsatisfactory. Schumacher was told the defendant wanted his money back, which was reported to be $500 to $600.
Schumacher said he was called to an irrigation ditch at the southwest edge of Lexington at about 7 p.m. Oct. 30, 1997.
Teenagers walking along the ditch found Zavala-Ruiz's body lying face down in water in the ditch, Schumacher said. The victim was killed with a shotgun blast to the left side of his head. Zavala-Ruiz had been reported as a kidnapping victim Oct. 11,1997.
The investigation of the kidnapping implicated Arevalo-Martinez, Schumacher said.
Schumacher said a van containing three men pulled alongside Zavala-Ruiz on a Lexington residential street. A witness told police one man holding a long gun forced Zavala-Ruiz into the van.
An arrest warrant for Arevalo-Martinez was issued April 27, 1998, and a second warrant was issued on Nov. 5, 1998, for Manuel Flores-Mares. A third man, Manuel Salazar-Hernandez, was sought for questioning in 2000.
Arevalo-Martinez has been in the Dawson County Jail since being arrested in Kansas City, Mo., last month. He was arraigned Feb. 19 and is being held without bond.
No evidence was introduced Thursday indicating that the murder weapon was never found.
Arevalo-Martinez showed no emotion as he listened to an interpreter as the prosecution made its case before County Judge Carlton Clark. Five members of Arevalo-Martinez's family came from Mexico for the hearing.
The Dawson County Sheriff's Department and investigators from the Nebraska State Patrol's criminal investigation unit also were involved in the investigation.
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DAWSON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE
10-5-2000 Update:
Antonio Zavala-Ruiz was the victim of a gunshot wound to the face. He was then rolled into a drainage ditch in rural Dawson County, Nebraska. The Dawson County Sheriff's Office is also seeking a possible third suspect. This suspect is Manuel Salazar-Hernandez. There is currently local and federal warrants for Distribution of Methamphetamine. Salazar-Hernandez is only being sought for questioning in regards to this murder case.He is possibly in the California area.
DAWSON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE
PRESS RELEASE
November 5, 1998
Today an arrest warrant was issued for Manuel Flores-Mares, age 31, described as an Hispanic male, approximately 5 feet tall, weighing 150 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair. Flores-Mares is formerly of Lexington, NE. He is charged with First Degree Murder in the death of Antonio Zavala-Ruiz on or about October 11, 1997. This is the second suspect sought in this case. On April 27, 1998 an arrest warrant for First Degree Murder was issued for Samuel Arevalo-Martinez, age 40, described as an Hispanic male, 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighing 150-160 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair. Arevalo-Martinez is also a former Lexington, NE resident.
At approximately 6:18 p.m. October 31, 1997, the body of Antonio Zavala-Ruiz was discovered just west of Lexington, NE on West Walnut Street by a group of youth. Antonio Zavala-Ruiz had been reported to the Lexington Police Department on October 11, 1997, as having been the victim of a kidnapping.
The continuing investigation is a cooperative effort of the Dawson County Sheriff's Office, the Lexington Police Department and the Nebraska State Patrol.
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