Arrest made in 15-year-old Rosemead high schooler's fatal stabbing, El Monte police say

A man has been arrested in connection with a 15-year-old boy's fatal stabbing in El Monte in early July, according to police. 

The incident, which killed Rosemead High School football star Aziel "AZ" Zacapala and left two other men wounded, happened in the 9700 block of Fern Street on July 10. 

At the time, El Monte police and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputies investigating the case said that Zacapala was taken to a nearby hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries after a fight near Potrero School turned into a stabbing. 

Friends and family members remembered Zacapala as more than a talented football player, but as a well-mannered kid who loved his parents. 

In a news release shared Wednesday, the El Monte Police Department announced that after nearly two weeks of investigation, officers had arrested 18-year-old Jonathan Castelan, of South El Monte, in connection with the stabbing. Castelan was arrested on Monday, July 20 and booked at the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Industry Sheriff's Station, the release said. 

The case was presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office on Tuesday, and Castelan was charged with one count of murder, one count of attempted murder and one count of assault with a deadly weapon, according to police. 

As the investigation into the incident continues, detectives ask anyone who knows more to contact LASD's Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500.