Still No Arrests in Murder of San Pedro Infant

Daniel Espat

In the wake of the gruesome murder of baby Daniel Espat in San Pedro on Tuesday morning, police have detained several individuals for questioning.  Initially, in the hours immediately following the deadly shooting, a sixteen-year-old minor was picked up.  By Wednesday two other men had been held in custody pending the outcome of the investigation.  Tonight, those young men have all been released and San Pedro police are back to square one.  Despite a possible lead suggesting the involvement of a known rival of the Espat family, that person of interest is yet to be linked to the homicide.  On Tuesday morning, shortly before two o’clock, a deadly spray of bullets caught the two-year-old boy twice in the head while he was sleeping next to his mother inside their apartment in San Pedrito.  While it is believed that Rolando Espat Senior was the intended target, he escaped unscathed.  Tonight, the family is making funeral arrangements for the toddler while his common-law wife Aleyda Sandoval remains hospitalized from gunshot injuries she also received.