Victorville pastor, Long Beach man jailed in alleged Riverside murder-for-hire plot
A Victorville pastor is accused of hiring gunmen to kill a man his daughter was dating in Riverside last year in a failed murder-for-hire plot, investigators announced Tuesday.
Samuel Davalos Pasillas, a 47-year-old pastor at a Spanish-speaking church, was arrested on March 13, according to the Riverside Police Department and Riverside County booking records. He faces charges of solicitation for murder, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon.
Also arrested the same day was 55-year-old Juan Manuel Cebreros of Long Beach. Cebreros is accused of being one of the attackers hired by Pasillas, police said. He was booked into jail on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon.
A third suspect reportedly remains at large, investigators told City News Service.
Failed murder-for-hire
The victim was wounded in an Oct. 21 shooting in Riverside's Orangecrest neighborhood, but survived, officials said.
"The victim stated he was driving on Grove Community Drive approaching Plainview Street when another vehicle pulled up alongside him," police said in a written statement. "Gunfire came from this other vehicle and he was struck several times."
Despite his wounds, the victim managed to drive to a hospital, police said.
As the investigation progressed, "(Homicide detectives) subsequently learned this was a murder-for-hire shooting," according to the statement. It was determined Pasillas had hired Cebreros to shoot and kill a man his daughter was dating at the time.
Detectives learned Pasillas had paid the attackers nearly $40,000 for the failed hit, police said. He provided them with information about the victim, including where he would be on the evening of the shooting.
The attackers surveilled the victim for several weeks leading up to the shooting, officials said.
Pasillas and Cebreros were arrested while police conducted raids in Victorville, Long Beach and Lynwood.
Bail was set at $1 million each, records show. Both were next scheduled to appear in Riverside County Superior Court on March 26.
Anyone with information on the case was asked to contact Riverside police Detective Nic Cantino at (951) 353-7104 or by email at NCantino@RiversideCA.gov. Tips may also be submitted anonymously by email to RPDTips@RiversideCA.gov.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Victorville pastor, 2nd man arrested in suspected murder-for-hire plot
