Jesus Manuel Salgado is the man being held in connection with the murders of four members of a Sikh family in Merced, California.
The victims are 36-year-old Jasdeep Singh; 27-year-old Jasleen Kaur; their 8-month-old child Aroohi Dheri; and the baby’s uncle, 39-year-old Amandeep Singh.
“Currently Detectives are looking for 8-month-old Aroohi Dheri. Detectives believe that Aroohi and her mother Jasleen Kaur (27) & father Jasdeep Singh (36) were taken against their will from a business in the 800 Block of South Highway 59. The Baby’s Uncle Amandeep Singh (39) was also taken against his will with the other family members,” an October 3 alert from the Merced County Sheriff’s Department said before the bodies were found on October 5.
According to CNN, the family “had been missing since Monday,” October 3, 2022, when authorities “said they were kidnapped by a man armed with a gun and forced into a truck.”
The motive is not yet clear, but authorities suspect that it may be robbery given Salgado’s criminal history.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Emotional Sheriff Confirmed That a Farm Worker Found the 4 Bodies
In a late-night news conference on October 6, 2022, the county sheriff, Vern Warnke, confirmed that “tonight our worst fears have been confirmed. We found the four people from the kidnapping, and they are, in fact, deceased.” The victims were discovered in an orchard.
He said the scene was still being processed and the crime lab was coming in. “There are no words right now to describe the anger I feel. … There is a special place in Hell for this guy.”
The sheriff said the family had been notified and that authorities were going to be at the scene all night.
The sheriff said the investigation would be “methodical.”
Warnke said a farm worker came across the bodies. They were found “relatively close together.” The sheriff did not go into details.
The sheriff said he was emotional because the deaths included a child. “I am just livid inside. … We have a whole family right now, and for what?” he said.
A relative, identified only as Balvinder, told CNN that the family was “peace loving,” owned a small business and “are longtime residents of the area.”
“We are devastated. We are shocked. We are dying every moment not finding any clues,” Balvinder told CNN.
2. Surveillance Video Captured the Kidnapping Suspect With a Firearm, Leading Zip-Tied Family Members Out of a Business
A surveillance video showed the suspect holding a trash bag and then pulling out a firearm and going into the business. There is no video inside the business.
The video then showed the suspect coming out of the business with Jasdeep and Amandeep Singh, whose hands were zip-tied behind their backs.
Six minutes later, the suspect went back in the business and took Jasleen, holding baby Aroohi, to a truck.
3. Salgado Attempted to Take His Own Life, Say Authorities, Who Released Images of the Kidnapping Suspect
Police released a photo of Salgado, and photos they say is the kidnapping suspect.
On October 4, 2022, in the morning hours, Merced County Sheriff detectives “received information that one of the victims’ ATM cards was used at an ATM located at a bank in the City of Atwater,” the Sheriff’s Department wrote in a statement on its Facebook page.
“Investigators obtained the surveillance photo of a subject making a bank transaction where the person is similar in appearance to the surveillance photo from the original kidnapping scene.”
At approximately noon, “working in conjunction with our local law enforcement partners, the Sheriff’s Office received information that identified Jesus Manuel Salgado (48-years-old) as a person of interest in this investigation. Prior to law enforcement involvement, Salgado attempted to take his own life. Salgado is in our custody, currently receiving medical attention and in critical condition,” the department wrote.
In the news conference, the sheriff said the suspect has been talking to authorities. He said the victims’ cell phones were found later on the road.
“Our focus now is on conviction,” Warnke said. The sheriff said the bodies were found in a farming area that is “extremely remote.”
3. Sheriff’s Officials Found a Victim’s Truck on Fire
On October 3, 2022, at approximately 11:39 a.m. CAL FIRE Madera-Mariposa-Merced “was dispatched to Buhach Road and Oakdale Road in Winton for a report of a vehicle on fire,” sheriff’s officials wrote.
“The vehicle was later identified to be a black 2020 Dodge Ram truck. The CHP – Merced arrived on scene to start the investigation. At approximately 12:35 pm, California Highway Patrol requested the assistance of Merced Police Department in an attempt to contact the registered owner of the vehicle, Amandeep Singh.”
When the Merced Police Department arrived at the residence, “they were not able to make contact with Amandeep however, they were able to reach another family member. The family members attempted to contact Jasleen Kaur, Jasdeep Singh, and Amandeep Singh. When they were not able to reach their family members, they called the Merced County Sheriff’s Office to report Jasleen, Jasdeep, Amandeep, and 8-month-old, Aroohi missing.”
At approximately 1:04 p.m., “our Office was notified and responded to a business on South Highway 59. During the primary investigation, Detectives determined that the individuals were kidnapped,” the release continued. “We are working with the California Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigations and other local law enforcement agencies to bring this family home safely. If you have any information regarding this incident or the whereabouts of this family, please call our tip line at 209.385.7547. Your tip can be confidential.”
4. Salgado Previously Duct-Taped His Former Boss & the Boss’s Family at a Trucking Company
Your Central Valley gave details of Salgado’s criminal history. The sheriff confirmed he was released on parole in 2015.
In 2007, he received 11 years in prison for “first-degree robbery, attempted false imprisonment, and dissuading a witness,” the site reported.
The man involved in that robbery works for a trucking company and had fired Salgado, who showed up at his house wearing a ski mask.
“I went to shut the front door,” the man told the news site “when he pulled out a gun and held it to the back of my head.”
Salgado taped the hands of that man, his wife, his teenage daughter and daughter’s friend and then stole their money and jewelry.
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