He was gunned down with 5 others in a drug-fueled desert massacre. Now we know his name

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, with some help from the public, has identified the last of six victims shot dead last month in a remote part of the Mojave Desert in what authorities believe was a dispute over illegal marijuana.

The Sheriff’s Department released what they hoped were recognizable images Thursday of the man’s face, scars along his body and a tattoo on the left side of his chest. Later in the evening, sheriff’s officials said they had identified the man as 41-year-old Adrian Ochoa-Salgado, who lived in Llano.

“We would like to thank the public for their assistance in our efforts to identify Mr. Ochoa-Salgado,” sheriff’s officials wrote in a statement.

Ochoa-Salgado’s body, along with five others, was discovered Jan. 23 around 8 p.m. in the community of El Mirage in the unincorporated area of Adelanto after one of the victims, mortally wounded, called 911 to report he had been shot, but did not know where exactly he was.

Some of the men were badly burned and all were fatally shot, investigators said.

Ochoa-Salgado was the last victim identified.

Investigators, when they sought the public’s assistance to identify him, described Ochoa-Salgado as Latino, between 30 and 60 years old, standing 5 feet, 5 inches, weighing 142 pounds and having medium-length curly black hair and brown eyes, according to a news release. They also described distinctive scars, as well as a tattoo on the left side of his chest that reads “Gio” or “Gia.”

The other victims have been identified as Baldemar Mondragon-Albarran, 34; Franklin Noel Bonilla, 22; Kevin Dariel Bonilla, 25; Jose Ruelas-Calderon, 45; and Narcisco Sandoval, 47, according to investigators.

The identified victims were Latino, possibly Honduran nationals, authorities said.

Five men were arrested on Jan. 28 in connection with the killings and charged with murder: Toniel Baez-Duarte, 34; Mateo Baez-Duarte, 24; Jose Nicolas Hernandez-Sarabia, 33; Jose Gregorio Hernandez-Sarabia, 34; and Jose Manuel Burgos Parra. 26.