1990 Castroville murder suspect pleads not guilty
UPDATE: 5/15/2018 9:16 a.m. The man accused of murdering a 14-year-old girl in Castroville nearly 30 years ago, pleaded not guilty.
Arsenio Leyva appeared in court for the 1990 murder of Christy Piña Tuesday morning.
Piña’s body was found in an artichoke field.
Days after Piña’s body was found, the Sheriff’s Office got a tip that Leyva was responsible.
DNA was collected and appeared to match Leyva, but in 1990, the technology wasn’t enough to prosecute.
It wasn’t until six years later they were able to match Leyva to the crime, but by then he was still living in Mexico.
Though Leyva is believed to be a suspect in other Central Coast cases, the DA says their extradition deal only allows them to try him for the murder of Piña and one other case involving lewd acts with a person under the age of 14.
Leyva’s bail hearing is set for Thursday and a pre-trial hearing is set for July 3.
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A nearly 30 year old cold case takes a major step forward.
The man suspected of murdering a 14-year old girl in 1990, now in custody.
Aresenio Leyva is now in the Monterey County jail after a lengthy extradition process from Mexico.
Leyva made his first appearance in court Monday, 28 years after his alleged crime.
“This is something that I wish all the thousands of families that have lost someone can have the feeling and this, that I’m going through today,” said Juan Piña, the father of Christy Piña, Leyva’s victim.
Christy was 14-year’s old when she was found murdered in a Castroville artichoke field in 1990.
“This investigation to date exceeds 2,000 pages in volume and is one of the largest and most labor intensive operations experienced in the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office,” Sheriff Steve Bernal said.
Days after Piña’s body was found, the Sheriff’s Office got a tip that Leyva was responsible.
DNA was collected and appeared to match Leyva, but in 1990, the technology wasn’t enough to prosecute.
It wasn’t until six years later they were able to match Leyva to the crime, but by then he was still living in Mexico.
Detectives finally got a lead in 2007 and seven years later he was arrested.
But even then, getting him back to the states proved a challenge.
“During the next three and a half years, Leyva filed several appeals fighting his extradition to the United States,” said Bernal.
Now, the case against him is still just getting started but, Christy’s father is grateful Leyva is finally behind bars.
“I was really happy to see him, more than anyone can imagine,” Juan Piña said, “We’re going to go forward with this and get justice for her, finally.”
Though Leyva is believed to be a suspect in other Central Coast cases, the DA says their extradition deal only allows them to try him for the murder of Piña and one other case involving lewd acts with a person under the age of 14.
PREVIOUS STORY: A man has been extradited and charged for his believed involvement in a 1990 Central Coast murder.
On February 8th 1990, the nude body of 14-year-old Christina Sue Piña was found by a farm worker in a Castroville artichoke field.
In 2011, Christina’s father Juan Piña told KION DNA evidence pointed to a man named Arsenio Pacheco Leyva as a suspect. He said in 1996, a federal judge signed a warrant, however an arrest warrant was not issued for Christina’s murder until September of 2007.
Today, Leyva made his first appearance in court after being extradited from Mexico. He is charged with attempted kidnapping, assault:commit rape, murder, and another that is not listed.
Christina’s father has been vocal about him feeling investigators did not do enough to catch the suspect in a timely manner.
KION is currently at a press event where the FBI, Sheriff’s Office and DA will speak. We will have the latest on this story at 5 and 6.
