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- A jury convicted Jonathan Arredondo-Garcia on two counts of first-degree murder.
- Prosecutors said he drove a carjacked vehicle that crashed and killed two women.
- He also was found guilty of robbery, carjacking, hit-and-run and resisting arrest.
A jury on Wednesday found a man guilty of murder for a 30-minute crime spree three years ago in Sacramento that ended with the defendant running a red light in a carjacked vehicle that crashed into a car and killed two women.
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Jonathan Arredondo-Garcia, 25, was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder along with other criminal charges for the crime spree, according to a news release from the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office.
The murder conviction was for the deaths of Stephanie Phan Ha, 49, and her friend, Linh Phan, 42, both of Sacramento who were in a gray 2022 Nissan sedan that was struck by the carjacked vehicle.
The jury also found Arredondo-Garcia guilty of two counts of robbery, carjacking, two counts of attempted carjacking, hit-and-run and resisting arrest. One of the attempted carjacking charges included an enhancement for using a knife in the crime.
The crime spree began on the morning of Jan. 19, 2023, in south Sacramento. Prosecutors said Arredondo-Garcia, carrying a knife, walked into the garage of the first victim and demanded the keys to victim’s van.
After handing over the van keys, the victim picked up a plumbing tool and swung it at Arredondo-Garcia until he ran away, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors said the crime spree continued minutes later when Arredondo-Garcia ran in front of a car and used his body to intentionally smash its front end and caused significant damage before leaving.
Shortly after, Arredondo-Garcia walked into the garage of a third victim. Prosecutors said he pushed the woman to the ground before stealing her vehicle and driving off at nearly 100 mph.
Arredondo-Garcia, reportedly in the carjacked small silver 2014 Toyota SUV, approached the intersection of Florin and Florin-Perkins Roads in south Sacramento. Prosecutors said he ran the red light at the intersection and crashed into the car and killing the two women.
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The deadly vehicle crash was reported shortly after 10:15 a.m. that day.
Arredondo-Garcia got out of the carjacked vehicle and tried to carjack another vehicle, according to the DA’s Office. Prosecutors said bystanders subdued Arredondo-Garcia until authorities arrived.
A Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy tried to take Arredondo-Garcia into custody, but he resisted arrest until other law enforcement officials arrived to help the deputy.
A sheriff’s spokesman said deputies were in the area supervising work project jail inmates cleaning a nearby site that morning, when the deputies heard the vehicle crash, and one of the deputies ran over to investigate.
The two Sacramento women were pronounced dead at the scene, the California Highway Patrol reported. Arredondo-Garcia was injured in the crash and treated at a hospital until he was booked 11 days later at the Sacramento County Main Jail.
At the time of his arrest, the CHP said Arredondo-Garcia was suspected of being under the influence of a drug.
The murder charges included special circumstance enhancements for committing multiple murders and committing murder during a carjacking.
On Friday, Arredondo-Garcia remained at the jail. He is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 11 in Sacramento Superior Court. Prosecutors said Arredondo-Garcia faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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