GUILTY CA - Eliza Delacruz, 3 wks, Long Beach, 4 Jan 2015

[jjenny]

Sorry, did I miss a link where it said no visible wounds?

"There were no signs of visible trauma, officials said. An autopsy was conducted Monday, but the medical examiner's office sealed the results at the request of law enforcement."

Source: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...h-Baby-Dumpster--287511201.html#ixzz3O5WcpOGJ
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[loveisthemovement]

If the shooter just started shooting indiscriminately when he entered the room, I wonder if Eliza could have been hit/grazed by a bullet? Or, considering her mother was holding her, what happened to Eliza when her mother was shot? Maybe she had fallen and suffered an injury which the gunman wasn't aware of until he had taken her to another location. Again, an accidental death wouldn't excuse this fiend who kidnapped Eliza. What brute wouldn't realize that a fall, even onto the bed, or a stray bullet could injure a tiny infant.

Poor Eliza! It's just horrible thinking about what she may have suffered in the final moments of her short life.

Wasn't the original story that she was taken from her crib? Or maybe I am confused

 

[Ontario Mom]

Wasn't the original story that she was taken from her crib? Or maybe I am confused

The first link I saw on this said "she wasn't in her crib" or wording to that affect.

 

[Irisha]

Long shot, but maybe the child was taken to be sold in the black market in Mexico. Someone earlier speculated that where the baby was found was convenient to public transportation. It's possible the baby was suffocated while the suspect was trying to keep her hidden and quiet on public transportation.

Just thinking out loud....

I was thinking along the same lines except....... if this horrible crime happened as the victims claim, maybe the kidnapper/killer knowing he/she would be on public transportation gave the newborn some drug.. Benadyrl/ something stronger to keep her quiet for a few hrs and overdosed her. If the parents or family members have any knowedge of why or who, they MUST get over their fear for Justice for their innocent daughters Eliza's murder. My heart goes out to the family, but you must speak. You were IMO not left alive on accident. IMO


Eliza was a really beautiful baby girl. RIP

 

[STEADFAST]

Video interview with the man who found Eliza in the trash bin. He says he waited 2 hours to call the police.

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...-Baby-Eliza-in-Imperial-Beach--287650511.html

ETA I'm not sure the guy says he waited during the video, but the newscaster said it.

Just saw this was posted way back -- they must have showed it on the noon news. I just saw it on the evening news.

 

[STEADFAST]

ITA it is a random place! There are so many other places in that 120 mile drive where little Eliza could never be found. IMO he either has connections in IB or the fact that she died set him to figure out a plan B. Maybe he was planning to cross the border with her and without an Amber Alert he thought it would be possible?

From what I know IB has a decent size homeless population, perhaps STEAD can confirm. If he was aware of the homeless population I would think choosing a dumpster in a strip mall would increase the possibility of her being found (thank God she was). I sure do with they had CCTV in the back of the strip mall.

All just rambling here but IB is just not fitting into the picture. MOO

Yes, if you've got to be homeless, this is the place to be -- most people are familiar with our various homeless citizens. I've seen this guy around.

I agree that IB is not the place someone unfamiliar with the area would end up. If you get off the highway on Palm and head west, next thing you know you're headed up north to Coronado on 75. You've got to purposely turn left to stay on Palm and end up where the perp put Eliza. I believe there MUST be an IB connection.

I'm intrigued by some friend of the family saying the motive was HATE. Really? There's got to be a story behind that.

 

[Leilei]

<snipped>

http://www.presstelegram.com/genera...called-horrifying-as-25000-reward-is-approved

Strange... okay, if you barge in intending to shoot the parents, and the mother has the baby in her arms, feeding her, obviously you SEE the baby, you know the baby is there. Why don't you leave the baby there, even if the baby died during the shooting for whatever reason? Why take the baby, alive or no, all the way down to IB, just to put her in a dumpster?

This bothers me a lot. Some things aren't making sense, but... well, nothing makes sense when a newborn is killed

 

[jjenny]

Video interview with the man who found Eliza in the trash bin. He says he waited 2 hours to call the police.

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...-Baby-Eliza-in-Imperial-Beach--287650511.html

ETA I'm not sure the guy says he waited during the video, but the newscaster said it.

Just saw this was posted way back -- they must have showed it on the noon news. I just saw it on the evening news.

Apparently he was concerned about the fine. Apparently collecting cans from dumpsters can result in a $280 fine (which is a lot for a homeless person, obviously).

 

[Curious Me]

Yes, if you've got to be homeless, this is the place to be -- most people are familiar with our various homeless citizens. I've seen this guy around.

I agree that IB is not the place someone unfamiliar with the area would end up. If you get off the highway on Palm and head west, next thing you know you're headed up north to Coronado on 75. You've got to purposely turn left to stay on Palm and end up where the perp put Eliza. I believe there MUST be an IB connection.

I'm intrigued by some friend of the family saying the motive was HATE. Really? There's got to be a story behind that.

I know the trolley goes down to IB. Does it stop anywhere near where the baby was found? Actually, I can't see using public transportation, but I haven't seen any mention of this person leaving Long Beach in a car.

Horrified to hear infant little Eliza was being fed when this happened. She is so beautiful. Heartbreaking. I'm thinking he left with a screaming baby. It hurts me to think how easily it would be to break an infant's neck trying to quiet/hide her. Would that be considered a visible trauma?

Hate? They have to get a sketch out fast! This person must be a monster!

 

[SDHELPS]

Strange... okay, if you barge in intending to shoot the parents, and the mother has the baby in her arms, feeding her, obviously you SEE the baby, you know the baby is there. Why don't you leave the baby there, even if the baby died during the shooting for whatever reason? Why take the baby, alive or no, all the way down to IB, just to put her in a dumpster? This bothers me a lot. Some things aren't making sense, but... well, nothing makes sense when a newborn is killed

BBM

A lot of things are not making sense but IMO I think this all adds up to a serious case of revenge. And a beautiful baby with cheeks you just want to kiss to pieces was a token to make the family suffer. I hate typing that but I can't possible think of another reason she was taken period. :anguish:

 

[Jan]

Someone mentioned that the father was a veterinarian and might be more financially stable than others in the area. The article I read said that he is a vet tech and not a veterinarian. There would be a big difference in pay level between the two.

 

[STEADFAST]

I know the trolley goes down to IB. Does it stop anywhere near where the baby was found? Actually, I can't see using public transportation, but I haven't seen any mention of this person leaving Long Beach in a car.

Horrified to hear infant little Eliza was being fed when this happened. She is so beautiful. Heartbreaking. I'm thinking he left with a screaming baby. It hurts me to think how easily it would be to break an infant's neck trying to quiet/hide her. Would that be considered a visible trauma?

Hate? They have to get a sketch out fast! This person must be a monster!

The trolley doesn't actually go to I.B. It stops a couple of miles away -- technically in San Diego's Palm City neighborhood a block east of the highway. There is a bus that goes from there to Imperial Beach and one stop is the shopping center where Eliza was found. The trolleys and buses are completely lit up when it's dark out, so I can't imagine someone traveling with a baby alive or dead and not being remembered. On the other hand, I can't imagine any of the details so far in this case.

 

[swedie]

It probably isn't important, but I'm really confused with the timeline of when Eliza was found and when the call went in. I was right there at the shopping center where she was found and didn't leave until 1:39. (I verified by a to-go phone call I made in the parking lot.) There was no commotion, no raised voices, no small crowd of people, no police cars. We pulled out in front of the Giant Pizza King and turned right, but looking to the left toward where the dumpster is, there was nothing of note going on. After we had waited 15 min for our to-go order nearby, went home, ate, THEN we heard police sirens. I'd say somewhere between 2:15 and 2:30.
Like I said, it probably doesn't make a difference, but it's just odd to me.

Steadfast, do you know if there are surveillance cameras on the front of this mall?

To access the dumpsters behind the building, would someone have to enter the parking lot from the front or side of the building and proceed around to the back of the building or is there access to the dumpsters/laneway without going near the front? I guess what I'm getting at is, for someone to go back to the dumpsters, if there is surveillance, would they be able to go back there without being captured on camera? I watched the interview with "Freddy" and the reporter but it doesn't appear that there are cameras behind the building. Not so sure about the front though and I cannot tell how many entrances there are to this parking lot and where they are at. TIA and MOO.

 

[swedie]

It may not mean anything but just interesting to note that this article claims that the one male victim was the baby's father. And the couple were boyfriend/girlfriend. I wonder how long this couple had been together and what type of relationship they had.

Apparently there were six people besides Eliza living in this house but three were not home at the time of the shooting. I saw a video the other day where a reporter interviewed whom I believe was the grandmother to Eliza but now I cannot find it. She spoke about how they are good people and just work and study or something like that. Anyone? MOO.

The baby's parents and uncle lived there with another uncle and the baby's grandparents, but no one else was there when the shooting happened, Cruz said.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/06/eliza-delacruz-case_n_6421150.html

“The father of 3-week-old Eliza Delacruz had just arrived home from work,” Knabe said. “He sat down on the edge of his bed and watched his girlfriend feed their newborn baby. Without warning, a male suspect entered the room and started shooting.”

http://www.presstelegram.com/genera...called-horrifying-as-25000-reward-is-approved

 

[Curious Me]

It doesn't seem like the plan was to kidnap the baby to keep Eliza alive or she would be. I don't think the person who kidnapped her had a car seat, diapers, or food for her. Why they decided to stop in Imperial Beach puzzles me. Whoever put her in a dumpster was operating from rage, revenge, and hate. It seems they felt entitled to feel that way, shooting the parents and all, for some crazy, personal reason. There's got to be more to the story and the connection, MOO. It just seems unlikely this was some random stranger, JMO.

 

[Curious Me]

The trolley doesn't actually go to I.B. It stops a couple of miles away -- technically in San Diego's Palm City neighborhood a block east of the highway. There is a bus that goes from there to Imperial Beach and one stop is the shopping center where Eliza was found. The trolleys and buses are completely lit up when it's dark out, so I can't imagine someone traveling with a baby alive or dead and not being remembered. On the other hand, I can't imagine any of the details so far in this case.

Steadfast, do you know if there are surveillance cameras on the front of this mall?

To access the dumpsters behind the building, would someone have to enter the parking lot from the front or side of the building and proceed around to the back of the building or is there access to the dumpsters/laneway without going near the front? I guess what I'm getting at is, for someone to go back to the dumpsters, if there is surveillance, would they be able to go back there without being captured on camera? I watched the interview with "Freddy" and the reporter but it doesn't appear that there are cameras behind the building. Not so sure about the front though and I cannot tell how many entrances there are to this parking lot and where they are at. TIA and MOO.

I don't know if there are any clues in looking at route information. There are map links included in this article.

From the Long Beach area:
"Delacruz was kidnapped from the family’s home on the 100 block of West 51st Street (map) after three of her family members were shot..."

http://fox5sandiego.com/2015/01/05/police-ask-for-help-in-finding-killer-of-infant/

To the Imperial Beach area:
"...in a trash bin at a commercial strip mall in the 600 block of Palm Drive in Imperial Beach (map) was Eliza Delacruz."

It's been years since I hung around IB. Is this the location? It's so populated by businesses, and I pray there's lots of cameras in that area.

Imperial Beach location
https://www.google.com/maps/place/6...2!3m1!1s0x80d94c5bd7d34195:0xb9fcd1be5950bd2c

 

[STEADFAST]

Yes, that's the location. It's not very busy right there at night -- nothing on the other side of the road and residential on either side of the shopping center. I don't know about the cameras, but I doubt there are any cameras outside in that area. The alley and dumpster where Eliza was found is actually next to Palm Ave and has a locked gate (that looks easy to climb.) It's right next to Palm because, although it is behind Giant Pizza King, Palm Ave runs by the side of the restaurant not the front of it.

 

[Leilei]

Yes, that's the location. It's not very busy right there at night -- nothing on the other side of the road and residential on either side of the shopping center. I don't know about the cameras, but I doubt there are any cameras outside in that area. The alley and dumpster where Eliza was found is actually next to Palm Ave and has a locked gate (that looks easy to climb.) It's right next to Palm because, although it is behind Giant Pizza King, Palm Ave runs by the side of the restaurant not the front of it.

Is that where the movie theater used to be? Trying to get my bearings as to where she was found.

 

[STEADFAST]

Is that where the movie theater used to be? Trying to get my bearings as to where she was found.

This is farther west than the movie theater was. Some other things in the strip mall are Big Kahuna Burger, a vet, a pet shop, a dog grooming place, a sushi restaurant, a convenience/liquor store, a fitness center. It's after you turn left to stay on Palm and just to the west of AB Brite Cleaners and a trailer park. It's on the north side of Palm. Here's a picture of the location where Eliza was found.

 

[Leilei]

Steadfast, looking at that photo and the area, there is no doubt in my mind that this killer knows that area, and knows it well.

I hope they find this guy soon. I know the parents are scared (from what I've read), but that's your baby girl, and who is to say that this killer won't come back?