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Hitchhiker Covered In Blood Turns Out To Be — You Guessed It — A Murder Suspect
An unnamed victim was found stabbed to death near where Jonathan Padilla hitched a ride in Highland, California.
If a hitchhiker covered in blood asks you for a ride, something's probably wrong. A California man took that lesson to heart this week and helped lead law enforcement to a suspected killer.
The unidentified Highland resident said he was leaving his home on Monday when another man asked if he could hitch a ride to San Bernardino, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office. The ride from Highland to San Bernardino is approximately five minutes.
The man complied and gave the individual, later identified as Jonathan Padilla, a lift.
“The resident gave the man a ride and saw what appeared to be blood on his clothing and other evidence indicating a serious assault occurred. When the resident returned home, they notified police,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement.
Responding deputies searched the area where Padilla had asked the man for the ride and “located a victim suffering from stab wounds. Medical aid responded, but the victim was pronounced deceased at the scene.”
The department began searching for Padilla and found him Tuesday at a home in Los Angeles, which is around 60 miles away. He was arrested without incident and now faces a charge of murder. His bail was set at $1,000,000 and he is due to be arraigned on Friday. It’s not yet clear if he has a lawyer who can speak on his behalf at this time.
The identity of the stabbing victim has not yet been released. A possible motive has not been disclosed.
