Death Penalty Affirmed For Riverside County Man Who Killed 4 People

INDIO, CA — In handing down a sentence of death for a 24-year-old Coachella Valley man, a judge said the case was one of the most difficult he's ever presided over.

On Friday, Judge Anthony Villalobos affirmed the findings of a jury that Jose Vladimir Larin Garcia was the man responsible for the 2019 murders of four young people in Palm Springs and should be sentenced to death.

Last year, Larin Garcia was convicted of killing Carlos Campos-Rivera, 25, of Palm Springs; Yuliana Garcia (no relation), 17, of Thousand Palms, who was pregnant at the time; Jacob Montgomery, 19, and Juan Duarte-Raya, 18, both of Cathedral City.

In addition to the four counts of first-degree murder in the case, the jury found true the allegation of personal use of a firearm, and the special circumstances of lying in wait, and multiple victims. Those special circumstances made Larin Garcia eligible for a death sentence.

The victims all died from targeted, execution-style gunshot wounds to the head, according to the prosecuting attorney Deputy District Attorney Samantha Paixao.

During Friday's hearing, Larin Garcia's mother pleaded with the judge.

"This decision that has been taken in regards to him I don't believe is fair. I don't believe there's enough proof for my son to be accused in this way," Yudis Garcia said. "Please sir, do not cause an injustice like the jury did. ... I know my son didn't do this."

Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said the decision of death is not one made lightly.

"The death penalty is reserved for those who have truly proven themselves to be without remorse for actions that are among the most egregious imaginable," he said. “The decision ... reflects the heinous nature of these crimes, committed by a man who took so much away from so many people ... .”

Friday's death sentence affirmation comes after years of twists and turns in the case.

A mistrial was declared in March 2022 after jurors deadlocked. A new jury was sworn in on Sept. 26, 2022, and on Feb. 6, 2023, Larin Garcia was found guilty.

In California, capital punishment is a legal penalty, but it is not carried out. Executions were halted via a moratorium signed in 2019 by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The Slayings

On the night of the Feb. 3, 2019, murders, Larin Garcia was riding in a green Toyota Corolla with Garcia, Montgomery and Duarte-Raya. They met up with Rivera near an apartment complex where the victim lived on Canon Drive in Palm Springs, according to the investigation.

Larin Garcia shot Rivera twice, including a "kill-shot" to the head, according to prosecutors.

A neighbor testified during the trial to hearing people screaming from inside a car, the sound of multiple gunshots and then a loud crash.

Palm Springs police found the bodies of Garcia, Montgomery and Duarte-Raya in the disabled Toyota on nearby Sunny Dunes Road, all with "targeted" gunshot wounds to the head, prosecutors said. Garcia was also struck on her hand, a wound believed to have occurred as she tried to shield herself from close-range gunfire.

The three were executed by Larin Garcia to eliminate witnesses to the Rivera killing, according to prosecutors.

As Palm Springs police investigated the slayings that night, they discovered Rivera's body nearby.

They also found Larin Garcia hiding under a truck a couple of blocks away from the disabled car — he was spattered in the victims’ blood, with his shoes and jacket removed, prosecutors said.

Larin Garcia was taken to the hospital for treatment of multiple scrapes. While there, he called his mother telling her he needed a lawyer. He then fled barefoot from the hospital wearing his medical gown, according to prosecutors.

Early the next day, an investigator from the D.A.’s office arrested Larin Garcia at a Greyhound bus station. He was wearing different clothing, had shaved his head, and was carrying a Florida-bound bus ticket booked under the false name of "Joseph Browning," according to trial testimony.

The Trials

Defense attorney John Dolan unsuccessfully tried to point blame for the killings on a 15-year-old boy, saying the teen made incriminating statements and shared social media posts that amounted to a confession.

The teen testified at both trials, denying guilt, saying his comments amounted to empty boasting.

Dolan was unmoved.

"If you've got a third person who's claimed credit for this, who's a meth user, who was not checked out in the investigation properly and communicates these [confessions] ... that guy has way more evidence against him than Larin Garcia," the defense attorney said.

Paixao, however, told the jury the teen had nothing to do with the killings, and while law enforcement could have done a better job with the investigation and handling of evidence, it shouldn't create reasonable doubt for jurors.

In December 2022, a judge denied the defense’s motion for a mistrial.

During last year's sentencing phase of the second trial, Paixao told jurors that someone who pulls a trigger and shoots each victim two times knows what they're doing and is acting with intent to kill.

"Some people are just bad," she said. "Some people just want to kill, and when you kill four people within a matter of minutes, you like to kill."

Those Left Behind

The magnitude of Larin Garcia's crimes was enormous, Paixao said Friday.

"It was five victims who were taken. Carlos, Jacob, Juan, Yuliana, and her unborn child. Their loss left a gaping wound ... . Mothers and fathers who are left without their child, children who have to grow up without their father, their grandchild, the siblings who must go on without their loved one," Paixao said.

During last year's testimony, Rivera's mother, Martha Sakowicz, explained through tears her relationship with her youngest son, how he would text her daily, how he loved to cook steak, how he wanted to become a physical therapist, and how he helped others.

"One thing about Carlos is he was always, always trying to help people. ... One time, I came home and he was making hot dogs, a bunch of hot dogs," Sakowicz said. "And I asked him, 'What're you doing?'... He said, 'This is for the homeless mom. They have nothing to eat, you should see them.' ... He was always looking out for people at the park."

Sakowicz said the last time she spoke to her son was the night before he died, that it was the last night he told her he loved her.

"As a grandma, it kills me to see my granddaughter without a father. It kills me to see them run to the ashes and say, 'Daddy, daddy,"' she said. "My life is never ever gonna be the same, you know. I feel like half of my brain is missing."

From the stand, Theresa Acosta, Rivera's girlfriend, told jurors last year that she and the victim met in 2017, fell in love and moved in together in 2018.

Their daughter was born five months after he was killed.

"It's been hard, but I have her. I'm able to look at her and just see him in her," Acosta said. "It makes me happy that I'm able to still keep him alive."

Rivera also had a son. The boy was 10 years old when his father was killed.

During Friday's hearing, Paixao read a statement from him:

"Larin Garcia, did you know that he was supposed to pick me up the next day to take me to the park? It was his day with me. That day never came. It destroyed me. You took that day away from me. You monster. I'm angry. Ten and a half years was not enough time for me."

Patch Editor Toni McAllister and City News Service contributed to this report.