Prosecutors presented evidence Wednesday against one of three people accused of a 2016 murder and kidnapping.

Alex Richard Valdez, 29, returned to court Wednesday to face the evidence of his alleged connection to the death of Kimberly Harvill, who was found fatally shot on the side of the road in Lebec last summer.

Investigators have alleged that Brittney Sue Humphrey, 22, and Joshua Robertson, 27, shot and killed Harvill, Humphrey’s step-sister, and then kidnapped her three children, ages 5, 3 and 2, in August 2016.

Related: Three Accused Murderers Returned To Court Today

Humphrey pleaded no contest to the counts at an arraignment hearing Tuesday, after the evidence was presented, according to the D.A.’s office.

“Humphrey pleaded open to the court to three counts of kidnapping,” said Ricardo Santiago, a spokesman for the district attorney’s office.

He explained the plea was made of her own volition, with no deal in place with prosecutors.

“It was not a negotiated plea,” Santiago said. “In fact, she pleaded over our objections.”

Humphrey will return September 7 for her sentencing.

Harvill’s body was found on a secluded road in Lebec with a gunshot wound to the head on Aug. 14, 2016. After her body was found, the investigation turned its attentions to Humphrey and Robertson who they believed Harvill was living with at the time.

The search for Humphrey and Robertson led investigators to find Harvill’s children in Albuquerque, New Mexico and the suspects in Colorado a day later.

Police found a missing 18-month-old baby, Madisyn Harper, with Brittney. Robertson was located two blocks away, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Valdez, although believed not to be the triggerman, was arrested in March of this year on suspicion of connection to the case, according to Detective Scott Matlock of the county’s Homicide Bureau.

Robertson also was charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a felon and two counts of an unrelated arson and one count of possession of flammable material.

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