Four defendants in a Santa Barbara fatal stabbing case appeared in court Wednesday but had their arraignments on criminal charges continued to June 26.
Five people have been charged in connection with the June 1 stabbing death of Alberto Suarez Torres, 29, of Santa Barbara on the city’s Eastside.
Police have said the Cacique Street attack appears to be gang-related, and the criminal complaint alleges the five defendants are members of the Westside gang, and drove into rival Eastside gang territory to tag it with gang graffiti.
The complaint alleges one or more of the defendants encountered Torres, an alleged Eastside gang member, and chased him before fatally stabbing him.
Igor Rai Ortiz, 19, Angel Rafael Barajas, 31, and Adelain Leilani Ibarra, 20, were charged with murder and gang enhancements, and Alondra Ochoa, 18, was charged with being an accessory to murder, and a gang enhancement.
A fifth defendant, a juvenile female, is facing charges that were not disclosed because of her age.
Superior Court Judge Clifford Anderson continued arraignments for the four adult defendants to late June after a brief hearing Wednesday.
Some of the defendants also have probation-violation cases related to the stabbing charges.
All four adult defendants have been charged with conspiracy to commit street terrorism, according to the complaint, which further alleges that all thave criminal convictions for serious or violent felonies and gang enhancements.
They are currently being held without bail in the Santa Barbara County Main Jail, although defense attorneys asked for OR/BR reports (own recognizance, bail reduction) in court Wednesday.
Defense attorneys objected to media requests to photograph the defendants in court, and Anderson decided to allow photographs of the hearing but not of the defendants themselves, who appeared in person, wearing orange jail clothing.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
