Man and woman charged in connection with fatal stabbing in Rose Bowl parking lot
Two people have been charged in connection with a fatal stabbing at a Rose Bowl parking lot in Pasadena, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office announced Friday.
Miguel Castaneda was charged with murder and Valentina Rosales was charged with accessory after the fact. The victim, Demetrio Tapia Jr., was stabbed to death during a fight Monday, prosecutors said.
Police received calls from passersby about 10 p.m. reporting a person down in a parking area in the 700 block of West Drive, known as Lot K. Detectives later learned that Castaneda and Tapia had “engaged in a verbal dispute” on social media days before the incident, police said.
The two agreed to meet to settle the dispute in the parking lot, where they started the fight that ended in the fatal stabbing.
Tapia was pronounced dead at the scene.
“Pasadena Police Detectives were relentless in their investigative efforts and worked tirelessly in the days following the incident, resulting in the arrest of two individuals,” police said in a news release.
Castaneda and Rosales, both 23, are scheduled to be arraigned Friday. Castaneda’s bail is set at more than $2 million, and Rosales’ bail is more than $1 million. If convicted, Castaneda faces a maximum sentence of 27 years to life and Rosales faces up to six years in prison.
Castaneda was convicted in 2017 for vehicle theft with a prior conviction, and Rosales was convicted in 2015 for second-degree robbery, according to the district attorney’s office.
Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia
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