Julio Robles-Castaneda was a 22-year-old Hispanic man from Pasadena, California, described by those who knew him as outgoing and easily humored. He was the father of a young son, born in October 2018. Known to friends as "Julito," he worked as a waiter.
In the early morning hours of November 6, 2019, a passerby discovered Mr. Robles-Castaneda’s body on the side of Angeles Crest Highway, a remote mountain road within Pasadena's jurisdiction.
An autopsy by the Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office determined he had died from multiple gunshot wounds. Investigators believed he was killed at the location where he was found.
The investigation moved quickly. Pasadena police detectives identified Daniel Cervantes, a 30-year-old man from Pomona, as a suspect. On November 7, just one day after the discovery, a U.S. Marshals task force arrested Cervantes at a home on Brigden Road in Pasadena. Authorities stated from the beginning that the killing was not random and that the two men knew each other, though a motive was not immediately released.
Evidence presented at trial later revealed the motive stemmed from animosity between the two men over their involvement with the same woman, Zulema Burgueno-Ramirez. Mr. Robles-Castaneda had a son with her and was in a relationship with her at the time of his death. Cervantes had also begun a sexual relationship with her in August 2019. In the month leading up to the murder, Cervantes told both the woman and a neighbor that he wanted to kill Mr. Robles-Castaneda, even showing the neighbor a gun. Just two days before the shooting, Ms. Burgueno-Ramirez warned Mr. Robles-Castaneda that Cervantes wanted to kill him.
Daniel Cervantes was charged with one count of murder, to which he pleaded not guilty. Following a trial, he was convicted of first-degree murder for the killing of Julio Robles-Castaneda. Cervantes later appealed the verdict, but the judgment was affirmed by the California Court of Appeal. The conviction was upheld as of October 2024.
