Killer Pleads Guilty Mid-Trial for Brutal Family Slaying

Louis Gabriel Lucero, 42, changed his plea to guilty mid-trial on Wednesday, admitting to the murders of his girlfriend and her two sons. The San Bernardino County Superior Court records indicate the guilty plea to three counts of murder and the special circumstance of multiple murders occurred on August 5. This development came a month into the trial, which commenced on July 6.

Lucero was accused of killing Erlinda Villareal, 42, and her sons, aged 9 and 12, on April 29, 2020. Deputies responded to their shared home in Victorville after discovering signs of a struggle, but no one was present. Later that day, three bodies were found in a desert area near Apple Valley by an off-roader.

Detectives identified Lucero as a suspect, determining the victims left their home with him and were murdered elsewhere before being left in the desert. He was apprehended in Red Cliff, Colorado, after a high-speed pursuit in a stolen vehicle that ended in a crash. Lucero was extradited to San Bernardino County to face charges.