A Venezuelan illegal immigrant has been charged with fatally stabbing a 68-year-old man during an alleged residential burglary just one day after being released from custody in California, according to court records and government officials.
Marcos Iriarte-Valdez, 36, allegedly attacked and killed Todd Stewart during a residential burglary on Aug. 6, according to a statement from Contra Costa County.
The Department of Homeland Security identified Iriarte-Valdez as a Venezuelan illegal immigrant and sharply criticized the circumstances surrounding the case, calling California a “sanctuary” state.
DHS urged Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom not to allow Iriarte-Valdez to be released again.
Newsom “must NOT RELEASE this murderer from jail and turn him over to us so we can REMOVE him from our nation,” DHS said.
The agency also released security camera footage that appears to show Iriarte-Valdez getting out of an SUV while wearing a tactical vest. Another video appears to show the suspect wrestling with Stewart over a knife outside the victim’s home in broad daylight.
Court records show Iriarte-Valdez had been released on pretrial release just one day before the fatal stabbing.
He had previously been arrested in April and charged with two counts of residential burglary before being released.
Following Stewart’s death, Iriarte-Valdez was hit with an additional felony murder charge. Court records also show enhancements related to an alleged killing during a burglary, use of a knife and committing the alleged crime while on conditional release.
His bail has now been set at more than $1 million, according to arrest records.
Iriarte-Valdez has denied all charges, according to a statement from the county.
Court records also show that judicial officer David E. Goldstein, who handled the proceedings when Iriarte-Valdez was released before the stabbing, will again oversee the suspect’s case.
Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton said her office intends to pursue the prosecution and seek accountability for Stewart’s death.
Her office will “pursue this case with diligence and integrity to hold Iriarte-Valdez fully accountable under the law for this devastating act of violence,” Becton told ABC7 Eyewitness News.
DHS, meanwhile, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement has placed an immigration detainer on Iriarte-Valdez.
The department told ABC7 that Iriarte-Valdez is a Venezuelan national who also holds citizenship in Spain.
The case has drawn attention from federal immigration officials because of Iriarte-Valdez’s immigration status and his release shortly before Stewart was killed.
For now, Iriarte-Valdez remains accused of murder and the additional enhancements connected to the Aug. 6 incident. He has denied the allegations as the case proceeds in Contra Costa County, where his bail stands at more than $1 million and federal immigration authorities are seeking custody of him.
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