A Canyon Country man accused of murdering his father will be back in court Nov. 12 after his preliminary hearing was delayed.
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Juan Alexander Mejia, 30, pleaded not guilty at his initial arraignment in May.
A preliminary hearing is for the judge to determine whether there is enough evidence to formally make Mejia stand trial.
A May 16 shooting of Mejia’s 53-year-old father, who goes by the same name,led to an investigation by Sheriff’s Station detectives that produced a suspect within days.
The shooting took place at the 19000 block of Newhouse Street in Canyon Country, at the elder Mejia’s residence.
Homicide Bureau detectives worked with Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station detectives to find Juan Mejia, 30, of Canyon Country, on charges that he fatally shot his father.
After a special bulletin was put out by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Mejia was found the following Saturday.
The public’s help was part of the reason why deputies were able to find and detain their suspect for questioning, according to a sergeant with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.
Detectives believe the suspect, arrived home intoxicated and began to argue with his parents at their home.
At approximately 11:47 p.m., he produced a gun and shot his father in the head, according to a Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau detective.
The weapon used in the crime has not yet been recovered by Sheriff’s Station deputies, according to previous reports.
“We got information that he was over in the Canyon Country area,” Nagler said. “And when we got over there, we found him and detained him.”
The crime remains the Santa Clarita Valley’s only murder this year to date.
Mejia is being held in lieu of $2,055,000 bail at the Pitchess Detention Center, according to the Sheriff’s Department’s arrest records.
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