Police have arrested a Southern California church pastor for an alleged murder-for-hire plot that targeted a man who dated his daughter.
The Riverside Police Department says an investigation began after a shooting five months ago.
On October 21, 2023, Riverside Police Officers responded to a hospital regarding a person who just driven himself to the emergency room suffering from gunshot wounds.
The shooting occurred around 7:00 p.m. in the Orangecrest neighborhood of Riverside. The victim, who apparently survived the ambush, said he was driving on Grove Community Drive when another vehicle pulled up alongside him.
Someone in the car opened fire and hit him several times. He drove himself to the hospital and was treated for his injuries.
Detectives say they learned it was a murder-for-hire shooting.
The victim had been dating a woman whose father is a pastor for a Spanish-speaking church in the city of Victorville. The father was identified as 47-year-old Samuel Pasillas of Victorville.
During their investigation, detectives uncovered evidence the father met with the men he hired and provided them with information about the victim, including his location the evening of the shooting.
Detectives say Pasillas paid the men almost $40,000 to carry out the job.
The men had allegedly conducted surveillance on the victim in the weeks leading up to when they shot him.
Police served search warrants on Pasillas' home on Wednesday and arrested him. He was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center for solicitation for murder, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and assault with a deadly weapon. He is currently being held on $1 million bail.
Juan Manuel Cebreros, 55, of Long Beach, was arrested for conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and assault with a deadly weapon. He is also being held on $1 million bail.
Police say the investigation is continuing.
