Pomona man linked to three killings makes court appearance

POMONA -- An alleged gang member linked to three recent killings made his first court appearance this morning since his arrest over the weekend.

Robert Louis Caballero's arraignment on murder charges for a September gang killing was postponed two weeks for scheduling reasons.

Meanwhile, additional details trickled out today about the killings that police say they have linked to the 32-year-old Pomona man.

Caballero, who has two strike convictions for previous crimes, was arrested early Saturday on a warrant issued for the September gang killing in Pomona.

After Caballero's arrest, Pomona police learned of two additional killings and notified neighboring police agencies of the location of the victims' bodies.

A 29-year-old El Monte man whose body was found Saturday under a Chino freeway overpass was Caballero's second cousin, according to family members of the victim -- David Arthur Padilla, Jr. -- who attended Caballero's court appearance today in Pomona Superior Court.

Padilla was reportedly last been seen by his family members on Thursday.

The relationship between Caballero and his other suspected victim remains unclear.

Lorraine Minjarez, 32, was found buried alongside Mt. Baldy Road on Saturday in the San Gabriel Mountains. She had been strangled and her throat was slashed, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.

Investigators believe Minjarez, of Covina, was killed near the site where she was buried, and was killed in "the last few days" prior to the discovery of her body, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Lt. Dan Rosenberg.

Pomona police notified sheriff's investigators of the general vicinity where Minjarez was buried, and investigators found her body after searching a "relatively small" area, Rosenberg said.

Caballero has not been charged in connection with either killing.

During his brief court appearance today, Caballero appeared to be at ease wearing blue jail-issued clothing. He smiled several times and laughed once during the hearing.

Caballero's mother, a Mira Loma resident, attended the hearing and said in an interview that she doesn't know whether her son is responsible for the killings he's accused of committing.

"All I can say is I'm really sorry about what happened," Thelma Caballero said. "He's a good kid. I don't know what happened."

Caballero remains jailed in lieu of $3 million bail at Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles.