FILLMORE : Friends Think Man Was Lured to Death

Homicide victim Ramiro Costilla left his job at the Highwest Nursery in Camarillo on Feb. 5 with $2,000 cash in hand to buy a late-model Ford Bronco that he was offered at a giveaway price.

Sheriff’s detectives are now investigating the possibility that the enticing offer may have lured the 22-year-old Camarillo man into a deathtrap, where he was stabbed repeatedly and robbed of his hard-earned bankroll, according to friends interviewed by investigators.

Costilla’s decomposed body was found Feb. 23 in the trunk of his abandoned Ford Thunderbird on King Street in Fillmore, within a few blocks of the home of co-worker Mario Garcia. On Wednesday, Ventura County sheriff’s detectives arrested Garcia on suspicion of homicide. Lt. Joe Harwell said detectives had tracked him to a relative’s house in Livingston, in Merced County.

Garcia, 19, had begun working at the nursery two weeks before Costilla disappeared, nursery owner Jo Maravilla said. Costilla, whose wallet and bankroll were not found, had worked at the nursery for three years, Maravilla said.

“His big mistake was that he didn’t take any of his friends or relatives with him,” said Josefina Contreras, 40, who lived next door to the small mobile home in Camarillo that Costilla shared with his uncle.

“His boss at the nursery said she questioned him as to who was selling this Bronco, because it was so new and so cheap,” said Mary Gonzalez, 38, of Moorpark, who knew Costilla since he came to Ventura County from Mexico City in 1984. “He didn’t answer her, he just turned around and kind of grinned, probably worried that if he told who it was, she would beat him to the deal or something.”

Harwell, head of the sheriff’s major crimes unit, confirmed Friday that the abandoned car containing Costilla’s body was found near Garcia’s residence. Harwell declined further comment, saying detectives on the case had not yet returned from Livingston.

Costilla saved up the money to buy a new car from his earnings of roughly $5 an hour, Gonzalez said. She said his savings were limited because he regularly sent $200 to $500 to his mother and three brothers in Mexico.