SAN JOSE – An investigation into an unsolved case has led to the arrest of a person in 2017 who was shot at close range as he stood outside a Wiener Schnitzel south of downtown, authorities said.
William Jacob Vellmure Jr., 33, of San Jose, was arrested June 5 following an investigation reopened two years ago by the San Jose Police Department and the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Cold Case Unit, in response to a police news release issued Tuesday.
Vellmure is being held without bail on the Santa Clara County Main Jail on suspicion of murder. According to court records, he was arraigned and arraigned on June 7.
The May 18, 2017, shooting resulted within the death of 38-year-old San Jose resident George Garza. The shooting was reported shortly after 10 p.m. as Garza stood outside the ordering window of the restaurant on South First Street near Edwards Avenue, witnesses told this news organization on the time.
Garza was taken to a hospital and died from his injuries. Witnesses said the shooting unfolded quickly and that Garza was seen staggering and a gunman running right into a automotive after which fleeing the world.
In a press release, Deputy Police Chief Paul Joseph praised the homicide unit and the prosecutor's office's cold case investigators for the arrest within the case.
“The solving of this seven-year-old murder was a direct result of the tenacity and determination of our homicide detectives, as well as the assistance of the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office Cold Case Unit,” Joseph said.
An affidavit and police report included within the criminal criticism against Vellmure describe that the reinvestigation initially focused on a person believed to have been on the Wienerschnitzel with Vellmure and two other men. They were in a position to discover the person on the scene using DNA taken from a corn dog stick left on the scene and an examination of his cellphone tracking signals from that night.
That man, who was not charged, eventually identified Vellmure because the shooter. Witnesses, including Garza's girlfriend, recalled Garza approaching the group of 4 men, which included Vellmure, and that after heated exchanges, a fight broke out between Garza and Vellmure. The girlfriend told investigators that when she tried to intervene, she was hit by one among Vellmure's punches.
According to the person in Vellmure's group, moments later Vellmure pulled out a gun and fired several shots at Garza, fatally wounding him. He added that the 4 then fled in a white automotive that other witnesses saw leaving the scene, the police report said.
The affidavit states that no witness identified Vellmure because the shooter based on the photo lineups provided by police. However, investigators were in a position to discover Vellmure on the crime scene by matching his DNA to a pair of sunglasses found on the scene, and in response to a witness account, Vellmure was known to wear those sunglasses on the back of his head.
Police also suspected that the initial conflict that led to the fight and shooting could have been fueled by gang tensions, but no gang-related charges were filed against Vellmure.
Anyone with information relevant to the homicide investigation is asked to contact the San Jose County Police Department Homicide Unit at 408-277-5283 or email Detective Sgt. Joel Martinez at 4117@sanjoseca.gov or Detective Hans Jorgensen at 4090@sanjoseca.gov. Tips will also be reported to Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408-947-7867 or siliconvalleycrimestoppers.org.
image credit : www.mercurynews.com