Photos show Newman, California, officer Ronil Singh smiling with his family next to his Christmas tree hours before he was shot and killed by a suspected illegal alien.
The photos, shared by the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department, show the 33-year-old officer, spending time with his loved ones before his final shift. They show him with his wife, Anamika, and their 5-month-old son at their home in Modesto on Christmas Day, according to the Daily Mail.
Gustavo Perez Arriaga, the suspect, was captured by police, said the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office. Arriaga surrendered as a SWAT team was about to raid the house that he was hiding in. The arrest was made nearly 200 miles away in Kern County, CNN reported.
Officer Ronil Singh, of the Newman Police Department, is survived by his wife and child. (Stanislaus Sheriff’s Department)Several years ago, Arriaga came into the United States illegally via the Arizona border. He then worked as a laborer in various jobs, several of those were at dairies, said Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson, reported The Associated Press.
Arriaga was believed to have been fleeing his native country of Mexico, according to Christianson. The Mexican national was arrested for DUIs and had gang affiliation. Arriaga was also found to have had multiple Facebook accounts, registered under various names.
Gustavo Arriaga, 32, was arrested on Dec. 28, 2018, for allegedly gunning down Newman Police Department Cpl. Ronil Singh on Dec. 26, 2018. (Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department)In the incident, Singh, 33, pulled over the suspect at 1 a.m. on Dec. 26, before he was shot. Other officers discovered Singh shot and took him to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Singh’s brother, Reggie, thanked the officers and individuals who helped capture Arriaga.
“I was waiting for this to happen. You working day and night made this happen,” Reggie said.
“Ronil Singh was my older brother. Yes, he’s not coming back, but there’s a lot of people out there that misses him,” he also said, CNN reported.
More Arrests
Seven other people have been arrested for lying to investigators, trying to throw them off while Arriaga fled to Mexico, according to Christianson.
“Anyone who provided protection is going to go to jail,” said Christianson in a news conference, reported NBC News.
Ana Leyde Cervantes, 30, Arriaga’s girlfriend, and his brother Conrado Virgen Mendoza, 34, were arrested on Friday.
They were expected to be charged with accessory after the fact, or aiding and abetting, reported the Sacramento Bee.
On Thursday, another of the suspect’s brothers, Adrian Virgen, 25, and a co-worker, Erik Razo Quiroz, were arrested.
“We had them in custody and asked for their cooperation and they lied to us,” Christianson said. In a statement, the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department said that the pair “were arrested yesterday for helping Arriaga escape after he shot and killed Corporal Singh” for accessory after the fact to a felony.
Conrado Virgen Mendoza, 34, and Ana Leyde Cervantes, 30, were arrested on Friday, Dec. 28, 2018, on suspicion of aiding and abetting Gustavo Perez Arriaga, who police say murdered Newman Police Department Cpl. Ronil Singh in Newman, Calif., on Dec. 26, 2018. (Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department)The investigation also included three other arrests on suspicion of aiding and abetting on Friday. The adults were in the house where Arriaga was found.
They were identified as Bernabe Madrigal Castaneda, 59; Ermasmo Villegas, 36; and Maria Luisa Moreno, 57.
Officials also said that investigators believe that they recovered the handgun that Arriaga used to shoot Singh.
On Dec. 27, President Donald Trump tweeted about the slaying, highlighting the crime that illegal aliens can bring.
“There is right now a full scale manhunt going on in California for an illegal immigrant accused of shooting and killing a police officer during a traffic stop. Time to get tough on Border Security. Build the Wall!” he tweeted.
This undated photo provided by the Newman Police Department of officer Ronil Singh of Newman Police Department who was killed by an unidentified suspect. (Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department via AP)In a press conference on Thursday, Christianson said, “We will relentlessly continue to hunt our suspect down and bring him to justice so that … we can bring closure to this community and this police department. This suspect is in our country illegally. He doesn’t belong here. He is a criminal.”
“This is a man that I saw every day he worked. This is a man that I relieved on Christmas Day so he could go home and spend time with his family and his newborn child,” added Newman Police Chief Randy Richardson, reported KCRA.
“I think that what’s being lost here is yes, he was a police officer and that’s why all of you are packed in this room—because he was tragically taken from us. But what needs to be known is he was truly just a human being and an American patriot.”
NTD News reporter Zack Stieber contributed to this report
