DC Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman heard testimony on June 3 on what prosecutors say was a suspect urinating near the victim’s car.
Alvin Cruz Garcia, 27, is charged with second-degree murder while armed for his alleged involvement in the homicide of 38-year-old Ramon Gomez-Yanez. The incident occurred on March 23, 2021 on the 1500 Block of Ogden Street, NW, right outside the Ogden Street Market grocery store.
According court documents, Gomez Yanez parked around his 8:30 p.m. before buying groceries. Returning to his car, he saw Cruz-Garcia urinating very close to it. Surveillance showed a short exchange between the two before Cruz-Garcia allegedly kicked and punched Gomez-Yanez several times in the head and fled. Gomez-Yanez died at the scene from head and neck injuries.
The victim’s younger brother was around the corner in their shared home, came outside, and witnessed his brother’s death despite efforts by first responders.
Gomez’s brother appeared grief stricken during testifying saying he “still didn’t understand” how something like this could happen. The Ogden Market store owner also testified in court, describing Ramon Gomez as a “nice, good guy,” and had “nothing bad to say” about him.
A police captain who was one of the first officers to arrive on the scene, captured bodycam footage of the victim showing his swollen face and a fractured skull.
Crime scene analysts later identified a silver Honda Civic they say contained evidence linking Cruz-Garcia to the incident and a fingerprint analyst testified the suspect’s prints were likely at the scene.
The defense challenged the evidence saying police should have looked more thoroughly, not just in a few locations.
DC’s Deputy Chief of the Homeland Security Department testified that a man resembling the defendant appeared in surveillance footage wearing a red Washington Nationals baseball cap at Metro stops near the crime scene. The defense countered the the ID was not definititive.
