Canoga Park : Acquaintance Arrested in Man’s 1994 Slaying
A Canoga Park man who eluded police for more than a year was arrested on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter Thursday night in connection with the accidental killing of a man in December 1994, police said.
As Jaime Pina, 25, stepped off a bus in Canoga Park, two police officers recognized him and arrested him at 7:30 p.m., Det. Rick Swanston of the West Valley Division said.
“They were given pictures of him, and they thought, ‘He sure looks like Jaime Pina,’ ” Swanston said.
Police have been looking for Pina in connection with the killing of 23-year-old Bernardo Martinez, shot once in the head with a .25-caliber semiautomatic at Pina’s apartment in 1994, Swanston said.
Police said Martinez and a friend were visiting Pina and his live-in companion, Martha Fiqueroa, at their Canoga Park apartment when Pina showed them his gun. After firing a shot outside, Pina then brought the gun inside to show it to Martinez when the gun went off, Swanston said.
Martinez was struck once in the head and died, he said.
Pina is being held on $40,000 bail at the Los Angeles Men’s Central Jail.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
