Trial starts for 2009 Pit Boss Barbeque double homicide
on October 10, 2012
Jury selection began Tuesday in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez for a double homicide inside a Richmond restaurant in 2009.
Four men have each been charged with two counts of murder plus gang offenses for the shooting and killing of Alvaro Garcia, 23, and Intaz Ahmed, 32, on Aug. 30, 2009 at the Pitt Boss Barbeque on San Pablo Avenue.
The jury will consider the case of two of the defendants, Steven Miranda, 23, and Ignacio Ruiz, 31, with the trial expected later this month. Eliseo Flores, 25, pleaded guilty to both charges last year and received a 25-year prison sentence. Victor Torres, 22, will be tried separately.
Richmond Police Sgt. Stina Johanson, the lead detective on the case, said the killing was part of an ongoing dispute between the rival Norteño and Sureño gangs. She said the Pit Boss Barbeque at the time was, “a sort of safe zone for Norteños gang members.”
Johanson said the victims were at the bar in the evening when the suspects entered and one of them shot the victims at close range with a double-barreled shotgun. “It was a horrific scene,” Johanson said.
Miranda, Ruiz, Flores and Torres were caught and arrested at a nearby house.
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