Gunman Indicted In Washington Heights Cold Case Murder, DA Says

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — A man has been charged for a Washington Heights murder that occurred nearly 30 years ago, the Manhattan district attorney's office announced.

Pedro Jiminez, 46, was indicted on one charge of second-degree murder for the 1990 killing of 19-year-old Mario de la Cruz, prosecutors said. Jiminez was arrested earlier this month in Liberty, New York, where he was in hiding, prosecutors said.

On July 11, 1990, Jiminez and de la Cruz began arguing near the corner of West 175th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, prosecutors said. During the argument, Jiminez pulled a gun on de la Cruz and shot him multiple times in the head and torso, prosecutors said.

Jiminez was on the run for nearly 30 years, traveling from city to city using different identities, prosecutors said. The Manhattan district attorney's cold case project, the NYPD’s Cold Case Homicide Squad and the NYPD's 33rd precinct tracked the man down to Liberty, New York, a quiet Catskills town with a population of less than 1,00 people.

"Thanks to the hard work and persistence of our prosecutors and investigators, the seemingly forgotten murder of a teenager has been solved," said District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., said in a statement. "The Cold Case Project’s systematic review of dozens of cold case homicides led to the indictment of Pedro Jimenez, who allegedly committed this brutal act of gun violence before spending nearly three decades living in hiding. We are committed to seeking justice for murder victims and their families, no matter how old the crime."

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