Man is accused in fatal stabbing of teen and burying him in a shallow grave

Authorities have arrested a man they say stabbed a Sonoma County teenager to death and buried him in a shallow grave more than three years ago.

Daniel Carrillo, 20, of Rohnert Park is accused of killing 18-year-old Kirk Kimberly, whose body was found on the campus of Sonoma State on Nov. 2, 2016, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

Kimberly, a resident of nearby Cotati, had been missing for more than two weeks before his body was unearthed by a university landscaper in an undeveloped, wooded area about 200 yards west of a parking lot.

Authorities said he had been stabbed multiple times.

Carrillo was booked into Sonoma County Jail on Feb. 28 after being interviewed by detectives, according to sheriff’s officials. At the time, he was being moved from the California Youth Authority in Stockton to the county for a separate case.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Juan Valencia said he could not elaborate on Carrillo’s other case because it was a juvenile matter but said it is unrelated to Kimberly’s death.

Carrillo is being held without bail, Valencia said.

Authorities did not specifically detail what led them to link Carrillo to Kimberly’s killing, but Valencia said the evidence collected included “cellphone data placing him at the scene.”