Ezra K. Deleon Guerrero, 24, was arrested at 10:21 p.m. on Tuesday night, within 48 hours after the body of 65-year-old Shim Jae Soung, known as “Papa San,” was discovered inside his store.
Deleon Guerrero was charged with first degree murder, armed robbery, and assault with a dangerous weapon.
He appeared for a bail hearing yesterday, represented by Chief Public Defender Adam Hardwicke. Assistant Attorney General Joseph Przyuski appeared on behalf of the government.
Wiseman set the preliminary hearing for May 27 and the arraignment for June 1.
In his affidavit, Detective Christopher Leon Guerrero stated that a woman called the Department of Public Safety and reported a robbery case at the New Star Market in Tanapag at 11:20 p.m. on May 17, 2009.
Leon Guerrero said police officers who were dispatched to the area found the victim lying unresponsive on the floor with blood coming out of his nose.
The caller told police she and her aunt walked over to the New Star Market to buy betel nut when they discovered the door partially opened and store items were scattered all over the floor.
Leon Guerrero said he entered the store and observed what appeared to be chips of tangan-tangan wood next to a pair of black frame eyeglasses on the floor.
The detective said he saw that the counter drawers were slightly open and some coins, amounting to 80 cents, in the drawers.
He said there was no indication of any struggle within the victim’s studio type room behind the cashier’s area.
At 2:26 a.m. on Monday, police recovered a tangan-tangan wood measuring 21/2 inches in diameter and 2 feet and 8 inches long in a grassy area behind the store. The wood matched the chipped pieces that were recovered inside the store.
The woman who reported the robbery incident told the investigators that she saw the suspect entering the store and going behind the counter when she and her aunt rushed out to call for help.
Leon Guerrero said the Criminal Investigation Division recovered a black long sleeve sweater with a hood and a black ski mask by an abandoned concrete house northwest of the crime scene across the beach side.
Police also recovered one case of Budweiser beer and one case of Bud Light partially hidden across the street from the crime scene. About $300 to $400 was missing from the store.
Several empty beer cans were recovered from one of the bleachers at the basketball court where the suspect was seen hanging out with several boys a few blocks away.
Police interviewed friends of the suspect, who revealed that the suspect distributed dollar bills to the children and bragged that “he just knocked out Papa San.|
A minor witness told police that the suspect picked out a barbeque stick earlier and wore a black ski mask over his face before heading toward the store.
The witness said he saw the suspect go into the store and strike the back of Papa San’s head twice.
The victim was transported to the Commonwealth Health Center where he was pronounced dead upon arrival by Dr. Martin Rohringer at 1:08 a.m. on Monday.
Guam-based medical examiner Dr. Aurelio Espinola, who performed an autopsy, found several fractures on both sides and the back of the victim’s head.
Espinola said the victim died as a result of multiple fractures to the skull as a result of repeated blows to the head.
DPS spokesman Eric F. David said the Crime Stoppers program contributed a lot to the arrest of the suspect within 48 hours. He said the suspect was drunk when the robbery happened.
David added that DPS met with the Korean Association of Saipan yesterday, which expressed gratitude for the quick arrest of the suspect.
David said the victim had been living on Saipan for over a decade, and his next of kin had already been informed and will arriving next week from the U.S.
