Reward of $10,000 Is Offered in Slayings

Calling it a devastating case for Ventura County, Sheriff Bob Brooks on Wednesday announced a $10,000 reward in the unsolved April killing of a young Oxnard man and a young Taft couple.

The reward, funded jointly by the county and a private foundation, was for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the shooting death of Daniel Campos, 21, of Oxnard.

Last month, authorities named Rudolfo Negrete, 22, of Oxnard as the suspect in the fatal shootings of Campos, Alexander Jordan, 24, and his wife, Cynthia, 22, who was two months pregnant.

The search for Negrete and possible accomplices has stalled because the suspect has fled the county and likely the country, Brooks said.

Julia Campos, Daniel’s mother, sobbed while addressing the media during a news conference at the sheriff’s Ventura headquarters. She begged the public to come forward with information about the killings.

“He was a good kid. He never hurt anyone,” she said, flanked by her husband, Miguel Sr., daughter Loree, 30, and son Miguel Jr., 28. “It’s not right for this person to be out free, capable of hurting someone else.”

Standing between enlarged photographs of both the suspect and Daniel Campos, Brooks said the April 17 slayings were perplexing, because there was no apparent motive for the Campos killing or relationship between him and the Jordans.

In the early morning hours, Daniel Campos, who worked at a local car dealership and lived with his parents, was found dead on the side of Haille Road, just south of Camarillo.

That evening, the Jordans were found a few miles away in a wooded area near Cal State Channel Islands. All three victims had been shot in the head.

Detectives believe robbery may have been the motive in the second crime -- the couple’s car was stolen and later found burned in Oxnard.

Jordan family members have said the couple was in the area on a weekend getaway. They did not attend the news conference.

“We’re very appreciative [of the reward],” said Bob Jordan, Alexander’s father. “We want the killer or killers off the street.”

Authorities said the reward fund was the result of efforts by Loree Campos, who found the Carole Sund/Carrington Foundation while searching on the Internet for organizations that help with unsolved crimes.

“I wanted to see what I could do to locate this individual who’s extremely dangerous and bring him to justice,” Loree Campos said, adding that her brother was a caring man who enjoyed watching movies and playing video games.

The Humboldt-area nonprofit was founded by Francis and Carole Carrington, whose daughter, Carole Sund, granddaughter, Juli, and family friend, Silvina Pelosso, were slain in 1999 near Yosemite National Park.

The victims had been staying at a lodge outside the park’s main gate when they went missing. A few weeks later, their bodies were discovered in remote spots in another county. Lodge handyman Cary Stayner was convicted and sentenced to death for the killings.

Speaking at the news conference Wednesday, foundation Executive Director Kim Peterson said, “This heinous crime is one we wanted to get involved in.... The reward money can only help if people call.”

Authorities hope the reward will encourage anyone with information about Negrete to come forward, including his family members, who live in Oxnard.

Detectives can be contacted anonymously at 477-7033 or through the Sheriff’s Department website at www.vcsd.org.