Friday, July 11, 2003 | 11:11 a.m.
Three teenagers charged in a violent crime spree that left an immigrant worker walking home from the grocery store dead will face murder charges in District Court, a Las Vegas Justice of the Peace ruled on Thursday.
After a six-hour preliminary hearing, Justice of the Peace Tony Abbatangelo determined there was enough evidence to warrant murder and attempted robbery charges against Julius Bradford, 18, Steven Perry, 17, and Tyrone Williams, 16, in the death of Benito Zambrano-Lopez, 48.
All three teens declined to testify.
The three will be arraigned before District Judge Michael Douglas on July 24. Chief Deputy District Attorney Robert Daskas said prosecutors have not decided yet whether one or more of the teens would face the death penalty.
Abbatangelo's ruling came after testimony from a string of witnesses helped link the teens to several acts of random violence that police believe were gang related.
One woman testified that she saw three black men dressed in red and black clothing surround Lopez in a residential neighborhood near Rancho and Vegas drives.
"They all started throwing punches and kicking him," she said. "Then one of them pulled out a gun and shot him."
A woman who called herself a friend of the suspects testified that she heard the teens brag about shooting a man the same day.
Perry, who also goes by the name Lil' Miz, initiated the conversation, she said, but none of the teens denied taking part.
"I remember Lil' Miz describing how the man was acting after he was shot, how he curled up," she said. "They were basically talking about what happened."
Another witness said she and her grandchildren were in a water park near Betsy Ross Elementary School on June 9 when two men she later identified as Williams and Perry grabbed her and demanded she give them her car keys.
"I'm grabbed from behind and my arms were secured around me," she said. "The other man leaped in front of me and said 'Give me your keys and no one will get hurt.' "
Abbatangelo dismissed a robbery charge against the teens relating to that incident. He said the charge should be refiled in Juvenile Court because it occurred separately from the murder.
Nevada law requires children 8 and older who are charged with murder and other charges stemming from a murder to be charged as adults, he said.
Police say the three suspects, along with 19-year-old Natasha Barker and 20-year-old Aaron Daniels, are responsible for several crimes around the Las Vegas Valley in recent months.
Daniels and Barker face murder charges in the death of Anthony Limongello, 40, a jewelry kiosk owner. A preliminary hearing in that case is scheduled for July 17.
Defense attorneys Kristina Wildeveld Coneh, Sean Sullivan and Marty Hastings argued that none of their clients was identified as the shooter and that there was no evidence of an attempted robbery.
One witness said she was walking home from the grocery store with her young daughter when she saw the teens attack Lopez.
She viewed the beating and the shooting from the opposite side of the street, she said.
"(Lopez) was trying to protect himself but he couldn't do anything," she said. "Then I saw (the shooter's) arm come up and then I heard shots."
She said she heard three gunshots and the teens ran away. The shooter lagged behind and stared at her for a brief moment before joining the others, she said.
"I couldn't move," she said. "I was just frozen."
She said she could not identify the suspects or tell which of the suspects pulled the trigger.
Daskas and prosecutor Giancarlo Pesci said they think the teens intended to rob Lopez when they approached him.
"It is our position that for whatever reason they abandoned their plan to rob the victim," Daskas said. "After the shooting they all scattered."
The carjacking victim said she handed over the keys to her 1999 Chrysler Sebring after one of the men put his hand to her face and simulated a slapping motion.
She couldn't tell if the men were armed but one of them kept his hand in his pocket during the incident, she said.
"I was totally disgusted with the whole situation," she said. "I was just thinking, 'I can't believe you're doing this."'
Police say the men drove off in the car and wrecked it after leading police on a high-speed chase that ended near D Street and Bonanza Road.
The chase, which included several police cars and a Metro helicopter, reached speeds of up to 90 miles per hour, Johnny Rodriguez, a Metro patrol officer, testified.
Police think the teens are linked to a gang that has roots in California. Rodriguez said he spoke to Perry following the collision.
"He said he was a gang member and that he was putting his work in," Rodriguez testified.
The friend of the suspects said she heard the teens discussing the slaying and saw them pass around a silver handgun at Daniels' house.
The witness, who said she is also Daniels' girlfriend, said Bradford called her Tuesday from the Clark County Detention Center to discuss her testimony.
"He told me not to tell you guys that it was supposed to be a robbery," she told prosecutors.
All three teens are being held at the Clark County Detention Center with bail set at $500,000.
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