Suspect in Slaying of Clerk Seized in S.D.

A 22-year-old man suspected of killing a 7-Eleven clerk during a robbery here last October was arrested in San Diego Thursday night, police said.

Miguel Naranjo Zamora, who had eluded authorities for more than six months, was recognized by two San Diego police officers as the suspect in an Oct. 19 robbery in which Varinder Singh was shot in the chest and later died.

“When questioned by officers about his true identity, (Zamora) became extremely nervous, stuttered his words and gave several inconsistent answers,” Santa Ana Police Lt. Earl Porter said.

Porter said Zamora also made “a spontaneous and unsolicited statement” that linked him to the crime.

Police had issued a warrant for Zamora’s arrest a week after the crime, which took place at the 24-hour store at Harbor Boulevard and 1st Street. Zamora was identified as a suspect based on a tape of the robbery taken with a store video camera.

Authorities said they did not know what prompted the shooting, because Singh did not resist the gun-wielding robber’s demands and handed over $65 in cash immediately.

Family members said Singh, 22, had come to the United States in 1991 to get married and to escape violence in his native India.

Zamora also had two outstanding warrants from two unrelated incidents: one for an alleged armed theft of a car in Santa Ana last August and a $500 traffic warrant.

He is being held at Orange County Jail on murder and robbery charges with bail set at $250,000.