Reynaldo Herrera Rodriguez

Case identification

Reynaldo Herrera Rodriguez, 35, was accused of killing three members of his ex-girlfriend’s family in Simi Valley, California, and then killing himself as officers closed in.

Timeline

• On September 7, 2001 — A man in Simi Valley, California allegedly shot and killed three relatives of an ex-girlfriend because he wrongly believed the woman had given him a viral disease.
• September 8, 2001 — Police discovered Rodriguez’s body in the Los Padres National Forest; officers confirmed the dead man was Rodriguez.
• Wednesday — Rodriguez went to the home of his former girlfriend, Maria Rios, and randomly fired at her relatives.
• Wednesday afternoon — Rodriguez entered the open garage of the home and fired a handgun, hitting Rios’ brother, Rigo Calderon, 16, and then entered the home and fired at all occupants he encountered.
• about an hour later (after officers heard a single shot) — Officers found the man shot in the head and located a gun next to the body.
• a day after the killings — The manhunt ended when the suspect killed himself at a campsite in the Los Padres National Forest as officers closed in.

Background

Rodriguez wrongly believed his ex-girlfriend had given him a viral disease. Rodriguez went to the home of his former girlfriend, Maria Rios, after she said she didn’t want a romantic relationship with him.

Maria Rios, 24, said she casually dated Rodriguez after meeting him at a 2000 New Year's Eve party but told him about five months ago that she didn’t want a romantic relationship with him. At one point, Rios said, Rodriguez accused her of giving him a virus.

The offence

Rodriguez entered his ex-girlfriend’s home through a garage door and shot five family members. Police described the shooting as random firing at her relatives. The ex-girlfriend, Maria Rios, 24, was not home at the time.

The dead were identified as:

• Esperanza Martinez, 80 (Rios’ grandmother)
• Ricardo Calderon, 12 (Rios’ younger brother)
• Shantal Rios, 4 (Rios’ daughter)

Additional victims described as injured were:

• Lucia Vargas, 19 (Rios’ sister), who was shot in the abdomen and hand and was in stable condition at Simi Valley Hospital on Friday.
• Rigoberto Calderon, 16 (also referred to as Rigo Calderon), who was shot in the leg and treated for a gunshot wound to his right thigh and released.
• Rafael Calderon Jr., 18, who broke a wrist after jumping out a second-story bathroom window and suffered a sprained ankle when he jumped from the second-story bathroom window.

The home belonged to Ana and Rafael Calderon, who were not home during the shooting.

Investigation and manhunt

Police launched a statewide manhunt for the murderous civil engineer who worked for the state Transportation Department. U.S. Forest Service rangers alerted sheriff’s deputies after spotting a vehicle matching the description of Rodriguez’s Ford Explorer. The vehicle was parked at the trailhead of a campground near Reyes Peak, about 30 miles north of Ojai. Campers told rangers he had been in the area begging for water and food. Officers discovered a rental car hired to Reynaldo Herrera Rodriguez, 35, near Ojai, California, in a remote mountain region northwest of Los Angeles.

A massive search of the Los Padres National Forest turned up Rodriguez’s body. Fifteen units, helicopters, and a SWAT team took part in the search. Officers heard a single shot fired before finding the victim and locating a gun next to the body. Police later confirmed the dead man was Rodriguez.

Simi Valley Police Sgt. Bob Gardner said Rodriguez went to Maria Rios’ home and randomly fired at her relatives, and that Rios was not home at the time.

Outcome

The manhunt ended in the Los Padres National Forest a day after the killings at a campsite when Rodriguez killed himself as officers closed in.

Rios, the 24-year-old ex-girlfriend, said:

"I would've much rather for him to stay alive and suffer like we are suffering, but he took his own life and he's not suffering anymore"

On September 8, 2001, police discovered the body of a man wanted for killing three people in a Simi Valley neighborhood this week. State park rangers found a rental car hired to Rodriguez near Ojai, and officers gave chase to a man seen near the car before losing him. A massive search then turned up the body of Rodriguez shot in the head about an hour later.

Other details

Witnesses told police Rodriguez was last seen driving a rented dark blue 2002 Ford Explorer. A 2000 Toyota model registered to Rodriguez was discovered in a parking lot early Friday. Police said the carnage began Wednesday afternoon when Rodriguez entered the open garage of the home and fired a handgun, hitting Rios’ brother, Rigo Calderon, 16. Police said that after that, Rodriguez entered the home and fired at all occupants he encountered. Police were investigating a motive for the deadly rampage.