Authorities and a cousin said the suspect in the slaying of an Indian-origin Sikh family, including an eight-month-old baby girl, had earlier worked for the family’s trucking business and had a protracted conflict with them that grew “quite heated” and resulted in an act of senseless violence.
According to Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke, the bodies of Jasdeep Singh, 36, Jasleen Kaur, their eight-month-old infant Aroohi Dheri, and the baby’s uncle, 39-year-old Amandeep Singh were discovered in an orchard on Wednesday evening after they were stolen on Monday.
The family, who was abducted at a company in Merced County, California, was originally from Harsi Pind in Hoshiarpur, Punjab. “Jesus Manuel Salgado, the key suspect in the kidnapping and murder, is a former employee who used to drive for the victim’s trucking company. They had a falling out and split ways “, according to NBC Bay Area, a family member was quoted.
According to the report, the relative also revealed that baby Aroohi Dheri was left for dead and died from exposure. Warnke also stated that he believes a second person was involved in the kidnapping and deaths, but that detectives are still gathering evidence.
“If that individual is observing, you might as well turn yourself in,” Warnke was reported by NBC Bay Area as saying. “Our investigators are like bulldogs. They’re not going down without a fight. They’ll go after and go after hard once we uncover or determine that there was, in fact, a second individual “He stated.
Feud between Salgado and the victims
The long-running feud between Salgado and the victims “became quite vicious,” according to KTVU news station. According to Warnke, relatives informed investigators that Salgado sent angry text messages or emails around a year ago after working for a trucking company.
According to family members, nothing was stolen from the trucking company, but all of their relatives were wearing jewelry. According to Warnke, an ATM card belonging to one of the victims was used in Atwater following the kidnappings. According to public documents, the family owns Unison Trucking Inc., and family members said they had recently constructed an office for it in a parking lot that the Singh brothers also operated, according to the story.
On Thursday evening, Salgado was officially booked into the Merced County Jail on four counts of kidnapping and four counts of murder. Deputies said he attempted suicide before being hauled into prison on Tuesday.
According to the story, Amandeep, the baby’s uncle, is survived by his wife and two teenagers. From October 6 to October 9, the city of Merced organized a candlelight vigil for the family every night at 7 p.m. The family members were abducted from a shop near the intersection of Dickenson Ferry Road and South Highway 59 in Merced County on Monday.
According to Warnke, a farm worker near the orchard discovered the remains and promptly notified authorities. He stated that all of the bodies were discovered close together. “There are no words to explain my rage,” Warnke stated.
“There’s a special place in hell for this guy,” he added of the suspect, who tried to commit suicide. He described the situation as “horrifically, horribly pointless.”. Warnke did not specify how the family was killed, only that it appears they were murdered before they went missing on Monday.
Salgado, a convicted robber, was previously convicted in Merced County of first-degree robbery with the use of a firearm, as well as attempted false imprisonment and attempting to impede or dissuade a victim or witness. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, he was sentenced to 11 years in state prison in that case.
He was released from prison in 2015 and three years later was released from parole. According to the correctional officer, he also has a conviction for possession of a controlled narcotic.
Continue to read more latest news
244 total views, 1 views today