Murder charges filed against at least one juvenile in connection with 2018 North Richmond fatal shooting

MARTINEZ — At least one teenager was charged in connection with the 2018 shooting death of a Castro Valley man in North Richmond, county prosecutors confirmed this week.

But the Contra Costa District Attorney declined to name the suspect — or even say how many individuals were charged — or discuss the case beyond confirming that murder charges were filed.

Raymond Vasquez, 60, was killed around 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 30, 2018, at Silver Avenue in North Richmond, during what police have described as a marijuana-deal turned robbery. In late 2018, two teens boys, aged 15 and 17, were arrested in connection with Vasquez’s shooting death.

The case is being prosecuted in juvenile court, which means whoever is charged, if convicted, faces significantly less time in confinement than they would in adult court. Under state law, those prosecuted as juveniles cannot be imprisoned beyond their 25th birthday except in rare circumstances.

Court records on the case would normally be publicly available, but the emergency court shutdown over COVID-19 has restricted access to files.

On the night he was killed, Vasquez had reportedly arranged to meet a 15-year-old boy to sell him six pounds of marijuana. Vasquez brought his teen daughter, and her friend, who were both younger than 16, police said.

But when the 15-year-old boy showed up — along with a 17-year-old boy — the suspects reportedly pulled guns on Vasquez. According to witnesses, the 17-year-old fatally shot Vasquez and the two suspects ran off with the large bag of marijuana, police said.

Police determined the suspects — one of whom attended Richmond High School — were members or associates of a North Richmond-based Sureno gang. When they arrested both teens in late 2018, detectives set them up alone in a room and planted a recording device. The 17-year-old was recorded chastising the younger teen for not wearing a mask during the robbery, according to investigators.

The case is markedly similar to the May 2017 killing of 20-year-old Allie Sweitzer, who was shot and killed in Richmond after being set up for a robbery by two local gang members. Sweitzer’s killers stole marijuana from her and friends after she was shot. The shooter in that case turned out to be a 15-year-old boy who was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Under a 2019 state law, SB 1391, anyone under 16 must be prosecuted as a juvenile, even for serious cases like murder or rape. If prosecutors want to charge a 16 or 17-year-old as an adult, they can only do so with a judge’s approval.