LYNWOOD : Suspect in Shooting Held on Drug Charge
A felony drug charge has been filed against a man who surrendered last weekend in connection with the shooting death of a sheriff’s deputy in Lynwood.
Eddie Perez, 32, is one of two suspects in the death of Deputy Stephen Blair, who was hit by gunfire Friday after stopping to question two pedestrians near Ham Memorial Park. Perez pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a charge of possession of cocaine with intent to sell. He was held in lieu of $50,000 bail pending a preliminary hearing May 26.
“There is not sufficient evidence to link [Perez] to the murder,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Susan Spear. “The investigation is continuing.”
Perez remains a suspect in the murder case, said Sgt. Ray Verdugo of the sheriff’s homicide bureau.
Sheriff’s investigators found Perez’s car in an alley about a block from the shooting, and said that a search turned up a small amount of cocaine.
Verdugo said Perez admitted that he belonged to a gang in the area where the shooting occurred, and that he lived with friends and in his car in Lynwood.
The County Board of Supervisors has offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of a second suspect.
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