Two arrested for connection to homicide in Corona where man was found dead in church parking lot
Police arrested two suspects involved in a homicide that occurred in Corona last week, after a man's body was found in a church parking lot.
The initial incident occurred on Aug. 17, when police were dispatched to the scene of the Church of Christ on Sherman Avenue after reports of a body being found in the church's parking lot. When they arrived, they found the body of a man in his 30s which showed signs of trauma.
After a week's worth of investigation, Corona Police Department officers located a vehicle they believed to belong to one of the suspects in the 1500 block of Via Santiago and attempted to pull the driver over.
The driver, now identified as 44-year-old Javier Lopez Martinez, attempted to evade police and fled from the area, prompting the officers to engage in pursuit. The brief chase ended when Martinez slammed the vehicle into several parked cars in the 1200 block of West Tenth Street and tried to run from the area on foot.
After the short foot chase Martinez was taken into custody and is being held on $1 million bail. He is being charged with murder, felony vehicle pursuit, felony hit-and-run and resisting arrest.
Police also arrested Martinez's girlfriend, 37-year-old Maren Nicolas, based on evidence gathered during their investigation. She was also charged with murder and held on $1 million bail.
There were an unknown number of people inside of Martinez's vehicle at the time of the crash, some of which are said to have sustained minor injuries.
Authorities have yet to identify the victim as they continue to search for next of kin.
