Crime & Safety

Teen Arrested + Accused of Killing Pro Bantamweight Boxer Eddie Leal in 2011

Manuel Edmundo Guzman Jr., 18, was arrested Tuesday at 180 Holsteiner Circle in San Jacinto, a police sergeant said. His booking photo was released Wednesday.

A San Jacinto teenager was arrested Tuesday in connection with the shooting death 10 months ago of 23-year-old pro bantamweight boxer Eddie Leal, a graduate of San Jacinto High School.

Manuel Edmundo Guzman Jr., who turned 18 in January, was arrested in San Jacinto, a police sergeant said in a statement. His booking photo was released Wednesday.

Leal was found deceased with multiple gunshot wounds inside his vehicle early May 30, 2011, in the 1900 block of Roanoke Street, San Jacinto police Sgt. Jim Erickson said in a statement.

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"The Riverside County Sheriff's Department Central Homicide Unit responded to the location and assumed control of the investigation," Erickson's statement said.

"They quickly learned Leal had graduated from San Jacinto High School in 2005 and was a bantamweight boxer who started his professional career in 2007. Leal's family and friends mourned the loss as investigators began to piece the case together."

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On Tuesday, Central Homicide Unit detectives arrested Guzman on suspicion of Leal's murder, Erickson said. He was taken into custody at 180 Holsteiner Circle, around the corner from where Leal was found shot to death 10 months earlier, according to inmate records.

Guzman was booked at Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta and his bail was set at $1 million. Guzman has a court appearance scheduled Thursday at Southwest Justice Center, according to inmate records.

The city of San Jacinto contracts with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department for its law enforcement services. San Jacinto is south of the San Gorgonio Pass, about 85 miles east of Los Angeles.


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