San Diego
A 44-year-old Ramona man was booked into San Diego County jail on murder charges Saturday in connection with the shooting death of a neighbor whose body was found in an isolated area of eastern San Diego County.
The suspect, Lee A. McAlister, 44, called sheriff’s deputies on Friday and told authorities that he had shot a male acquaintance on Wednesday morning and had disposed of the body, according to the San Diego County sheriff’s office.
The suspect then led deputies to the isolated site near Kitchen Creek Road, east of the Buckman Springs area, where the body was found amid the brush about five miles north of Interstate 8, according to the sheriff’s office.
The victim was identified as Stephen J. Brown, 41, a self-employed plumber who lived in Ramona.
There was no word on the motive for the slaying.
The shooting is believed to have occurred at the suspect’s Ramona residence, the sheriff’s department said in a statement. A handgun that was probably used in the slaying was found in the suspect’s dwelling, according to the sheriff’s statement.
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