by California prosecutors filed enhanced murder charges against the suspect kidnappings and murders an 8-month-old baby, her parents and an uncle.
On Monday, the Merced County District Attorney’s Office filed four counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances against Jesus Manuel Salgado. The announcement comes days after he was initially arrested and charged in the alleged abduction and murder of 8-month-old Aroohi Dheri. her parents, 27-year-old Jasleen Kaur and 36-year-old Jasdeep Singh and her uncle 59-year-old Amandeep Singh.
The special circumstances were added because there were multiple murders allegedly committed in the commission of a kidnapping, prosecutors said.
Salgado was also charged with arson and possession of a weapon by a prohibited person. He was scheduled to be arraigned Monday afternoon and faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The four family members of the deceased were which was found on Wednesday by a farm worker in the San Joaquin Valley.
Merced County Sheriff’s Office
Salgado was booked into the county jail Thursday after being released from the hospital after trying to kill himself.
Jesus Salgado had previous convictions for first-degree robbery with a firearm in Merced County, attempted false imprisonment and attempting to deter or deter a victim or witness. He was sentenced to 11 years in state prison in that case, released in 2015 and eligible for parole three years later, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. He also has a conviction for possession of a controlled substance, the department said.
Last week, Jesus’ brother, Alberto Salgado, was arrested for criminal conspiracy, accessory after the fact and destruction of evidence, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office said.
Police said Salgado’s feud with the family dates back a year and “got pretty bad.” Jesus Salgado kidnapped the family from their trucking business on Monday before their bodies were found two days later.
“There are some things you’re going to put in the grave. This to me was pure evil,” Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke said in an interview Thursday.
