Two men were behind bars today on suspicion of murder in the slaying of a 21-year-old UCLA student whose body was found after a fire at her Westwood apartment.
Alberto Medina, 22, was arrested Saturday in Fresno, and 22-year-old Eric Marquez was taken into custody Sunday near his apartment in Westwood, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Medina and Marquez were linked to Andrea DelVesco’s death through forensic evidence collected at the scene of the Sept. 21 fire in the 10900 block of Roebling Street, as well as witness statements, police said.
Both men were booked at the Van Nuys Jail on suspicion of murder. Medina was being held without bail and Marquez in lieu of $1 million bail, the LAPD reported.
According to UCLA, Marquez is a fifth-year undergraduate student at the university, majoring in biology. Medina is unaffiliated with the university, according to UCLA.
Medina’s father told the Los Angeles Times that his son is due to appear in a court hearing this morning.
“He told me he didn’t do it,” the man told the newspaper.
Marquez’s mother and brother told The Times that Eric Marquez came for a visit Saturday, and the family went to a movie. Eric Marquez acted happy, as if nothing was wrong, they said.
Marquez’s mother said Eric Marquez is a hard-working student who wants to be a doctor.
“He’s a perfect son,” she said in Spanish, with her younger son translating, adding that she doesn’t believe the allegations, The Times reported.
DelVesco, who was from Austin, Texas, and was entering her fourth year at UCLA studying psychology and Spanish, was facing drug-related charges at the time of her death.
On July 8, she was arraigned on charges of possessing the drugs Ecstasy, LSD, methamphetamine and Psilocybin, and pleaded not guilty. DelVesco had remained free on her own recognizance, and had been tentatively scheduled to appear in court next week, according the Superior Court’s website.
Neither police nor the county coroner’s office have disclosed how DelVesco was killed.
DelVesco was a member of the Phi Beta Phi sorority.
