LAPD announces arrest in triple homicide in Porter Ranch
LOS ANGELES, Calif. (FOX11) - Three people have been arrested and charged in connection with a triple homicide in Porter Ranch.
On February 18, three men were gunned down inside a home in an upscale gated community on the 20300 block of Via Galileo.
The suspects were all arrested on the East Coast. Kenneth Peterson was arrested in North Carolina, while Travis Llewellyn Reid and Chaquetta Charmain Cook were arrested in the Baltimore area, police say.
The three victims were identified as Gary Davidson, 34, a renter who lived at the home; Benny Lopez, 45, of Anaheim; and Jesus Perez, 34, of Perris.
Related: 3 men shot and killed in gated Porter Ranch neighborhood
"Victims Davidson, Lopez, Perez and the three suspects were involved in the illegal sales and transportation of cocaine. It appears clear that Mr. Davidson knew the suspects and allowed them into the residence as to conduct an illegal narcotics transaction on Feb. 18, when the murders occurred,'' said LAPD Capt. William Hayes.
"Yesterday morning, June 5, Maryland state police, Baltimore city police, Baltimore County police, Los Angeles Police Department robbery-homicide detectives served search and arrest warrants in Baltimore and Baltimore County.''
Hayes said Davidson and the defendants are suspected of running "asignificant drug operation'' that allegedly moved cocaine from Los Angeles to the Baltimore area.
According to Hayes, a woman who lives at the home was in an upstairs bedroom and heard what she believed to be a gunshot. The woman tried to somehow contact Davidson, but when she was unable to reach him, she called police, Hayes said.
Video from the scene showed shattered glass by a door leading to a backyard and a person sitting in front of the home wrapped in a blanket and appearing visibly distressed.
According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, Reid and Peterson were each charged with three counts of murder, along with special circumstance allegations of multiple murders, making them eligible for a possible death sentence. Cook was charged with one count each of murder and
offering to transport cocaine.
The defendants allegedly arrived in Los Angeles the day before the killings, then left the night of Feb. 18, according to prosecutors.
All three defendants are being held on the East Coast, pending extradition to Los Angeles County. Prosecutors will decide later whether to seek the death penalty against Reid and Peterson. Cook faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
Cook is being held in lieu of $2 million bail, while Peterson and Reid are being held without bail.
CNS contributed to this report