A 23-year-old Long Beach woman was arrested for allegedly providing aid to a man who has been charged with murder in an apparent gang-related shooting, authorities said Thursday.
Maria Urieta, who police say was aware of the murder, was arrested Wednesday about 6:55 p.m. in the 400 block of West Broadway, between Magnolia and Chestnut avenues, according to the Long Beach Police Department.
Urieta “provided aid to Juan Lopez to protect him from trial, conviction or sentencing,” police alleged.
Lopez, 20, was charged in the June 29 killing of 33-year-old Soktear Phuy. He is also facing three counts of attempted murder stemming from an incident that occurred two days prior to the fatal attack, as well as an allegation that he used a gun.
Two other men — Brandon Conrad Garcia, 23, of Hawaiian Gardens, and Andrew Miranda, 29 — are charged alongside Lopez in the three attempted murders on June 27 and are also facing gun allegations. Garcia is facing an additional attempted murder count related to a June 28 incident, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
All three men have appeared in a Long Beach courtroom, but did not enter pleas. They are scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday.
The fatal shooting was reported about 7:40 p.m. June 29 in the 1400 block of Rose Avenue. Responding officers found Phuy lying in the courtyard of a Long Beach apartment building with gunshot wounds to his chest. Paramedics took him to a hospital, where he died.
Lopez and Garcia were arrested earlier this month, booked on suspicion of murder and named by police in connection with Phuy’s killing, along with a third man, Richard Frias, 20, of Long Beach. Frias was booked on suspicion of murder and possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell, but was not charged in the criminal complaint against Lopez, Garcia and Miranda.
“The exact motive for the shooting is currently unknown,” police said at the time of the arrests. “However, the incident is being investigated as gang-related.”
Miranda was arrested the following day.
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