Details Unfurl In Case Of Man Accused Of Killing Lover's Husband

WESTMINSTER, CA — A 46-year-old man killed his lover's husband in Westminster nine years ago so the couple could be together and cash in on his assets, a prosecutor told jurors Thursday, while the defendant's attorney said her client had nothing to do with it.

Robert Rafael Saavedra Gallardo is charged with murder with a special- circumstance allegation of murder for financial gain. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Saavedra is accused of killing 58-year-old Adrian Zapata, whose body was found in his apartment in the 15100 block of Brookhurst Street about 10:35 a.m. on May 22, 2014.

Saavedra and Olga Vasquez-Collazos, 46, met in Peru and dated, but Vasquez-Collazos later got married to Zapata, who met her while he was vacationing in Peru, according to Senior Deputy District Attorney Janine Madera. Zapata, who had emigrated to the United States and became a citizen, married Vasquez-Collazos Sept. 10, 2011.

Zapata arranged to have his wife and her two sons come live with him in Westminster on April 17, 2013, Madera said. Before the move, she lived in Zapata's condo in Peru and carried on her affair with Saavedra.

In 2014, Vasquez-Collazos was diagnosed with cervical cancer and underwent surgery at the end of April, Madera said.

Saavedra flew to the U.S. and got a hotel room in Santa Ana near UC Irvine Medical Center, where Vasquez-Collazos was being treated, Madera said.

"There's only one thing standing in the way of these lovers -- the victim, Adrian Zapata," Madera said.

Zapata loved his wife, but, "It's a very one-sided love story," Madera said.

Vasquez-Collazos was disappointed that her husband was not as wealthy as she assumed, so he worked longer hours and bought her a car, Madera said.

"He starts to work more, he's stressed, he's drinking more, smoking more," Madera said.
Then Zapata grows suspicious that his wife is having an affair, Madera said.

Saavedra and Vasquez-Collazos had been sending affection and at times explicit messages to each other through Skype and Facebook, and, "She told her son, Renzo, about the possibility of moving somewhere else," Madera said.

Saavedra and Vasquez-Collazos discussed how to delete Skype and Facebook messages, Madera said.

Zapata found a secret Facebook page that included photos of his wife with Saavedra, Madera said. And the lovers also discussed that, the prosecutor said.

At one point, Zapata called Saavedra and confronted him about the affair, Madera said.

Saavedra was staying with a friend in Van Nuys and working for him to pay for his room and board in the days before Zapata's killing, Madera said.

"They conspired to murder him so they can be together, that's the main priority," Madera said.
But the "bonus" was getting the victim's condo in Peru, an insurance policy and money from a 401K fund, which had "modest" value, Madera said.

Much of the evidence in the case will focus on the tracking of "secret" cell phones the two used, Madera said.

"The phone records are going to show the story of this murder," Madera said.

Vasquez-Collazos "set up an allibi" for her as she went to UCI on the day of the killing to get a note about her medical condition to give to her employer, El Torito restaurant, and then went to a grocery store before she returned home to find the body, Madera said. She gave Saavedra a house key, and there were no signs of a break-in at the house, Madera alleged.

Zapata sustained two blows to the back of his head, fracturing his skull, and was stabbed four times in the neck and three in the shoulder, Madera said.

Saavedra is accused of "staging the scene to look like a robbery," with various items thrown around, but valuables such as a TV were not taken, Madera said.

Police also found in the victim's car, "next to a booster seat and a Tae Kwon Do bag, a box of condoms and a nightie," to make it appear Zapata was having an affair, Madera said. But Saavedra's DNA was found on the nightie, Madera said.

For the next five days, Saavedra and Vasquez-Collazos do not communicate on the phone or through messages, Madera said.

Six days after the killing, the two checked into the same hotel, but in separate rooms and Vasquez-Collazos went over to stay the night with Saavedra, prompting one of her sons to look for her, Madera said.

Police were not aware of Saavedra until doing surveillance on Vasquez- Collazos, Madera said.

Police attempted a ruse in November 2014, saying they found the killer's DNA on the body of the victim and that it appeared the suspect was out of the country, Madera said. Police had set up a wire to see if the two would discuss the phony claim and implicate themselves, Madera said.

Vasquez-Collazos did not react like one would expect when told police were near an arrest of the killer of her husband, Madera said. Instead, she seemed agitated, the prosecutor said.

The two ceased communicating after that ruse, Madera said.

Saavedra's attorney, Shannon Winston of the Orange County Public Defender's Office, told jurors, "The evidence is going to show my client had nothing to do with the murder of Adrian Zapata."

Winston said her client did not have any motive to kill Zapata because he was continuing his affair with Vasquez-Collazos unimpeded. The two could have gotten married before she met Zapata but did not, Winston said.

"He didn't need to murder her husband," Winston said.

Saavedra made no attempts to conceal his relationship with Vasquez- Collazos, Winston said. He introduced her to his friend as his girlfriend, the attorney said.

"So he's not trying to cover anything up," Winston said. "In no way is he trying to keep the relationship a secret. The person trying to keep things a secret is Olga."

Saavedra "has nothing to gain by (Zapata's) murder," Winston said.