George Garza, a 38-year-old resident of San Jose, California, tragically lost his life on May 18, 2017, in a fatal shooting incident. The incident occurred in front of a Wienerschnitzel restaurant located on South First Street near Edwards Avenue. Witnesses reported that the shooting happened swiftly and violently, with Garza being shot at close range while standing in front of the eatery's ordering window. The gunshots were heard by nearby police officers who were patrolling the area.
Despite being rushed to a local hospital, Garza succumbed to his injuries shortly after the incident.
The case remained unsolved for several years, but a breakthrough came in 2024 when a cold-case investigation led to the arrest of William Vellmure Jr. The San Jose Police Department, in collaboration with the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Cold Case Unit, revived the investigation two years prior, which eventually led to Vellmure's arrest on June 5, 2024. Vellmure, who was 33 years old at the time of his arrest, was charged with the murder of George Garza and was held without bail in the Santa Clara County Main Jail. He was formally arraigned on June 7, 2024.
The renewed investigation revealed that Vellmure was identified as the shooter through a combination of DNA evidence and cell phone location signals. A corndog stick left at the scene provided crucial DNA evidence, and further examination of cell phone data placed Vellmure at the location of the shooting. Witnesses, including Garza’s girlfriend, recounted that a confrontation had occurred between Garza and a group of four men, including Vellmure, which escalated into a physical altercation and ultimately led to the shooting. The persistence and determination of the homicide detectives and cold-case investigators were instrumental in bringing closure to this seven-year-old case.
