Who is Gary Jonathan Garcia? All About Cudahy Serial Killer

Gary Jonathan Garcia and Wayne McNeely Timberland were arrested as suspects in a string of killings in LA County Monday.

A brutal night of violence in the county encompassing three cities saw four people shot and killed within three hours in a five-mile radius in southeast Los Angeles County.

Two men were arrested for the shooting, Gary Jonathan Garcia and Wayne McNeely Timberland.

In a news conference, Capt. Andrew Meyer of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the men, 42-year-old Gary Jonathan Garcia and 20-year-old Wayne McNeely Timberland, shot four people in Bell, Huntington Park, Cudahy and unincorporated Los Angeles on Sunday and Monday.

The shooting is believed to be part of a gang initiation ritual.

In this article, we break down what we know about these two suspects and their involvement in these incidents.

Who is Gary Garcia?

Gary Garcia is a 42-year-old American male who has been arrested for a shooting spree that killed four people in Cudahy, Bell and Huntington Park in Los Angeles County.

The shootings started over the weekend on Sunday and spilled into Monday before police made arrests Tuesday.

The victims

The first shooting took place in the 6000 block of Bear Avenue in Bell around 11:30 p.m. Sunday night when a man, Kevin Pereda, was found shot to death near the Martha Escutia Primary Center, leading to the school being closed on Monday due to the investigation.

Another man was killed less than two miles away in the 1500 block of East Florence Avenue eight minutes after midnight, deputies said. The victim was a Hispanic male who was found unresponsive and pronounced dead at the scene.

Nine minutes later, a double shooting left 14-year-old Javier Pedraza dead and another teen wounded in front of the Ellen Ochoa Learning Center, located in the 5000 block of Live Oak Street in Cudahy, LASD confirmed.

The wounded teen is expected to survive.

The fourth deadly shooting was reported in the 6300 block of Santa Fe Avenue in Huntington Park at 2:37 a.m. when a deputy in a patrol car observed a person lying in the street.

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The suspects

Gary Garcia Jonathan and Wayne McNeely Timberland were arrested by police Tuesday as the main suspects for the killings. Police has not clarified who killed whom.

In a news conference following their capture, Capt. Andrew Meyer of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said Garcia and Timberland shot four people in Bell, Huntington Park, Cudahy and unincorporated Los Angeles on Sunday and Monday.

“It appears this was a random murder spree; however, homicide investigators have not ruled anything out,” Meyer said.

The police are yet to uncover the motive for the killings but the two have been reported to be gang members.

According to KTLA, Gary Garcia Jonathan has an extensive criminal history but his co-suspect, Wayne McNeely Timberland is clean.

The weapons they used for the killings also remain at large.

Meyer also confirmed that Gary Garcia Jonathan and Wayne McNeely were arrested separately – one in San Bernardino County by deputies and another was taken into custody at a Compton home by the LASD’s SWAT team.

They were tied to a vehicle, a Honda Pilot that was seen at all four crime scenes and was then spotted in San Bernadino County.

The license plate was the same in each instance, Meyer said.

Two of the attacks took place near schools but Bell Mayor Fidencio Gallardo said that there is no threat to students.

“These shootings were not school-related. It is safe to go to school,” he said.

Meyer also touched on the possibility that there could be a third party uncovered as invesigations progress.

“As they say, if you see something, say something,” Meyer said.

Gary Jonathan Garcia and Wayne McNeely Timberland arrested for string of murders

Two men have been arrested for allegedly killing four people in southeast Los Angeles County in a span of less than two hours on the night of February 13, 2024.

The suspects, identified as Gary Garcia, 42, and Wayne McNeely Timberland, 20, were taken into custody on February 15, 2024, after a tip from a witness led the police to their location.

The first victim, a 24-year-old man named Kevin Pereda, was shot and killed near near the Martha Escutia Primary Center in Bell around 11:30 p.m.

A second victim man was killed less than two miles away in the 1500 block of East Florence Avenue eight minutes after midnight, deputies said. The Hispanic male victim was found unresponsive and pronounced dead at the scene.

The third victim, a 14-year-old boy named Javier Pedraza Jr., was shot and killed in front of the Ellen Ochoa Learning Center, located in the 5000 block of Live Oak Street in Cudahy around 12:15 a.m.

The fourth deadly shooting was reported in the 6300 block of Santa Fe Avenue in Huntington Park at 2:37 a.m. when a deputy in a patrol car observed a person lying in the street.

“The officer stopped his vehicle to check on the person’s welfare and discovered a Hispanic male adult suffering from [at least one] gunshot wound to the upper torso,” LASD said.

He was pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles County Fire Department paramedics.

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The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the killings appeared to be “a random murder spree” and that the suspects were gang members.

A red Honda Pilot SUV believed to be involved in the shootings was recovered by the police. The motive for the shootings remains unclear.

The families and friends of the victims expressed their grief and anger over the senseless violence.

Berenice Parada, the wife of Kevin Parada, said her husband was at a friend’s house chatting about the Super Bowl when he was murdered.

She described him as a loving and caring person who had a bright future ahead of him.

Javier Pedraza Jr. was a student at the Ellen Ochoa Learning Center in Cudahy.

His classmates and teachers remembered him as a smart and friendly boy who loved soccer and music. A GoFundMe page has been created in his honor. The other boy who was wounded in the same shooting is recovering at a hospital.

Despite the incident being reported just before 12:30 a.m. Monday morning, parents of Ellen Ochoa Learning Center students said they were not properly notified of the gruesome scene in front of their children’s school.

That led to their children seeing a body when coming to school Monday, a situation which infuriated many parents.

“When it’s raining, we get alerts right away, but for a body, we didn’t really hear anything until 8 o’clock in the morning,” one parent, Karla Lopez, told KTLA.

“My daughter was asking me about the body, but she knew that someone was dead outside her school,” said Carlos Pran, another parent. “It’s getting very dangerous for us and our kids.”

The LA County Sheriff’s Department is asking anyone with information about the shootings to contact the Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500.

They also said there may be a third suspect at large and urged the public to be vigilant.

Who is Wayne McNeely Timberland?

Wayne McNeely Timberland is the 2nd suspect in the violent shooting spree that struck L.A County late Sunday and early Monday.

Four different shootings occured in the cities of Bell, Cudahy and Huntington Park, taking four lives including that of a 14-year-old boy.

Wayne McNeely Timberland, 20 years old, was arrested alongside Gary Garcia Jonathan.

Whilst Gary Garcia has a lenghty rap sheet, Timberland is clean and has been arrested for the first time.

Police continue to investigate the crimes and are also looking at the possibility of a third suspect.

In 2021, L.A. experienced its highest number of homicides in nearly 15 years, with 397 murders, up 11.8 percent from 2020 and 53.9 percent from 20191.

The LAPD also reported 1,459 victims shot in 2021, up from 946 in 20191. The LAPD attributed the increase in violence to the effects of the pandemic and gang activity.

In 2023, L.A. saw a drop in violent crime, with homicides down 17 percent over 2022.

However, property crime was up, especially car thefts.

The LAPD credited the decrease in violence to the deployment of more officers, the expansion of community policing programs, and the collaboration with other law enforcement agencies.

Bell, Huntington Park and Cudahy

Cudahy is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States.

In area, Cudahy is the second smallest city in Los Angeles County after Hawaiian Gardens but with one of the highest population densities of any incorporated city in the United States.

It is part of the Gateway Cities region and had a population of 23,805 as of the 2010 U.S. Census.

Cudahy is named for its founder, meat-packing baron Michael Cudahy, who purchased the original 2,777 acres (11.2 km2) of Rancho San Antonio in 1908 to resell as 1-acre (4,000 m2) lots.

These “Cudahy lots” were notable for their size—in most cases, 50 to 100 feet (15 to 30 m) in width and 600 to 800 feet (183 to 244 m) in depth, at least equivalent to a city block in most American towns.

Bell is an incorporated city in Los Angeles County, California, near the center of the former San Antonio Township (abolished after 1960).

Its population was 35,477 at the 2010 census, down from 36,664 in the 2000 census.

Bell is located on the west bank of the Los Angeles River and is a suburb of the city of Los Angeles. At 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2), Bell is the thirteenth-smallest city in the United States with a population of at least 25,000.

In 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau ranked Bell’s land area at 1245 out of 1257 cities (defined as incorporated areas) and two unincorporated areas that had a population of at least 25,000 in year 2000.

Huntington Park is a city located in the south central region of Los Angeles County, California, United States.

As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 54,883, of whom 97% are Hispanic/Latino and about half were born outside the U.S.

Huntington Park and its Pacific Boulevard area is a mostly Hispanic, working-class inner Southeast L.A. area.

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