Felon Accused Of Shooting 1, Trying To Kill 6 Others In San Jacinto

BANNING, CA — A felon accused of killing a man and trying to kill a half-dozen others while shooting into traffic at a San Jacinto intersection was charged Thursday with murder and other offenses.

Julio Cesar Rodarte, 39, of San Jacinto, was arrested Monday following a Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigation into the attack at West Seventh Street and South San Jacinto Avenue.

Along with murder, Rodarte is charged with six counts of attempted murder, shooting at occupied vehicles, being a felon in possession of a gun and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.

The defendant, who is being held without bail at the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, was slated to make his initial court appearance Thursday afternoon at the Banning Justice Center.

He is accused of killing 42-year-old Victor Hugo Leon of San Jacinto.

Sgt. Rafael Victorio said that shortly after 7 a.m. Monday, Rodarte positioned himself at the north San Jacinto intersection and opened fire "at passing vehicles."

"Multiple vehicles were struck by gunfire," Victorio said.

He said that Leon and another man were hit. Court documents indicated that four other people were nearly shot.

Leon and the other wounded party, whose name was not released, were taken to a regional trauma center for treatment. Leon died, but the other person was recovering Thursday.

Rodarte evidently fled prior to patrol deputies reaching the scene of the shooting, and Central Homicide Unit detectives took over the investigation.

Victorio said the defendant was tracked down hours later and taken into custody in the area Scovell Avenue and State Street, less than a mile west of where the alleged attack occurred.

A possible motive was not disclosed.

Court documents show Rodarte is a prior strike felon, though his conviction occurred in another jurisdiction and was not listed.

According to a GoFundMe page established on behalf of the victim's family, Leon was a father of three sons and a daughter.

Leon "was driving home after an overnight shift at work," according to the page. "He was only minutes away from his home when this tragedy occurred. Victor was an amazing father, husband and friend. ... Victor's smile and sense of humor will be truly missed, he leaves a hole in the hearts of us who knew him."

The page had raised more than $41,000 as of midday Thursday.