A couple who police suspect of having ties to the violent MS-13 street gang used a machete and a knife to kill a man and injure his girlfriend during an ambush in a jacuzzi area at a Lake Forest apartment complex, a prosecutors told jurors on Thursday at the outset of their murder trial.
Jose Andrade-Membreno, then 22, and Xiomara Berrios, then 18, are on trial for the special circumstances murder of Marcos Morales, who was stabbed to death and nearly beheaded during an early morning attack on Oct. 1, 2018 at the Forest Glenn apartment complex. A third man accused of taking part in the slaying — Edwin Diaz — is being tried separately.
The killing came after a “gun deal gone bad” involving Morales, Deputy District Attorney Richard Majchrzak told an Orange County Superior Court jury during opening statements in a Santa Ana courtroom.
Weeks before his violent death, Morales sold a .22 rifle to a boy for $300, the prosecutor said. The boy bragged about the rifle on social media, the prosecutor alleged. An angry Morales forcibly took the rifle back, hitting the boy in the head in the process and failing to return the money the boy had paid for the weapon, the prosecutor added.
Andrade-Membreno knew the boy, Majchrzak said, and along with Berrios, who was dating Andrade-Membreno, and Diaz, who is Berrios’ brother, allegedly decided to kill Morales. In a Facebook Messenger exchange shown to jurors, Berrios wrote “Let’s kill him,” which the prosecutor described as a reference to Morales, while Andrade-Membreno responded by messaging “Let’s go then.”
Andrade-Membreno, Diaz and Berrios shortly after 2 a.m. rushed Morales and their girlfriend while they were in the jacuzzi area, the prosecutor told jurors. Morales was stabbed at least once in the initial attack, but used a patio chair to fend off his attackers and managed to run into the apartment complex yelling for help.
The suspected male attackers — Andrade-Membreno and Diaz — ran after Morales and killed him, the prosecutor alleged, while Berrios stayed back at the jacuzzi area and stabbed Morales’ girlfriend.
A neighbor found Morales’ body outside his apartment shortly after 5:30 a.m. Morales’ girlfriend survived.
Police found blood they matched through DNA to Morales on jeans belonging to Andrade-Membreno and a shoe belonging to Berrios, Majchrzak said. Investigators also found “videos, photos and memes” tied to MS-13 on Andrade-Membreno, Berrios and Diaz’s phones, the prosecutor added, and a witness reported hearing Andrade-Membreno yell “Mara Salvatrutcha!” — another name for MS-13 — while he was allegedly attacking Morales.
Defense attorneys representing Andrade-Membreno and Berrios declined to give opening statements on Thursday, reserving their right to do so later in the trial.
Andrade-Membreno admitted to previously being a member of MS-13, the prosecutor said. Berrios denied being a member, court records show, though the prosecutor said she told police that she knew members of the street gang. Diaz also denied being a member of MS-13, according to court records.
If convicted, they face up to life in prison without the possibility of parole.