San Diego

3 Arrested Nearly 2 Decades After Brutal Killing in North Park Thanks to Forensic Tech Advances

Thanks to advances in forensic technology, San Diego police are one step closer to putting three men behind bars for their alleged role in the brutal killing of a man in North Park nearly two decades ago.

On August 23, 2000, police responded to an alley west of the 3700 block of 28th Street and found 71-year-old LeRay Parkins suffering from traumatic injuries.

He was rushed to an area hospital where he died three days later.

Homicide detectives identified three persons of interest in the case but had trouble placing them at the scene of the crime. The San Diego Police Department (SDPD) and the San Diego County District Attorney's Office never stopped investigating the crime.

According to SDPD, forensic technology advancements helped investigators solidify their case against those three men 17 and a half years later.

Arrest warrants were issued for Lester Bell, 38, Terrence Maurice Brown, 36, and Edward Jamar Brooks, 38, and they were all taken into custody Wednesday in separate states with the help of the U.S. Marshal's Service.

Bell was arrested in Longmont, Colorado, Brown was arrested in Tucson, Arizona, and Brooks was arrested in Charlotte, North Carolina.

They will be extradited to San Diego to face charges.

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