A 37-year-old Simi Valley man pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and criminal threats in Ventura County Superior Court for killing his father in 2024.
Gerardo Arroyo Almanza also admitted to several special allegations, including that he had a prior strike and that he used a deadly weapon, according to a Ventura County District Attorney’s Office news release.
Such allegations have the possibility of increased sentencing if found guilty. He faces 30 years to life in prison and an additional term of nine years and four months during his sentencing hearing scheduled on Sept. 11.
The charges stem from an April 6, 2024 attack, where several of Arroyo Almanza’s family members drove to his Simi home to check on his well-being, the DA’s office said.
While near their vehicles parked across a street, the Simi man ran out of the house wielding a knife to confront his family and threatened to kill them, the DA’s office said.
Arroyo Almanza chased his mother and father around a parked car, and eventually caught up to and pinned his father to the ground, DA’s officials said. He stabbed his father, Alfredo Arroyo Sancen, several times before running as neighbors began to gather.
A neighbor, who was a trained EMT, provided first aid to the father before an ambulance arrived to transport him to Los Robles Regional Medical Center. Arroyo Sancen later died at the hospital.
Officers with the Simi Valley Police Department found Arroyo Almanza hiding a block away from his home and arrested him.
Arroyo Almanza was determined incompetent to stand trial on March 6, 2025, but was deemed competent months later, in October.
Ernesto Centeno Araujo covers breaking news for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at ecentenoaraujo@vcstar.com, 805-437-0224 or @ecentenoaraujo on Instagram and X.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Simi Valley man, 37, pleads guilty to 2024 second-degree murder
