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A criminal illegal migrant charged with murder for allegedly butchering a Bay Area retiree to death in the victim’s front yard is accused of committing the brutal crime during a botched burglary, court documents show.
Marcos Iriarte-Valdez, 36 — a Venezuelan national who also holds citizenship in Spain — faces life in prison for the fatal stabbing of Todd Stewart, 68, just outside Stewart’s Martinez home last week.
Iriarte-Valdez had been released from jail only the day before the alleged killing.
Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton vowed to hold him accountable for the devastating act of violence that took the life of Stewart, a father of two who is being mourned by stunned neighbors and family members.
“Our thoughts are with the victim’s loved ones and the larger community as they navigate this unimaginable loss,” Becton said.
Prosecutors say Iriarte-Valdez stabbed Stewart to death with a knife while committing a residential burglary at approximately 5:10 pm on August 6. The suspect was hit with three additional enhancements to the murder charge related to his alleged use of a knife during a burglary and his being out on conditional release at the time.
Surveillance footage that captured the horrifying attack appears to show Iriarte-Valdez pulling up to Stewart’s house in a Cadillac SUV wearing dark jeans, a gray shirt and a protective vest.
Iriarte-Valdez, who also lived in Martinez, is allegedly shown sitting in his vehicle for a while before getting out and launching a brutal knife attack on Stewart.
The men can be seen grappling on a sidewalk and between two parked cars before Stewart stumbles to the ground.
Iriarte-Valdez allegedly continued stabbing Stewart after he fell, as the victim howls in agony.
Stewart was pronounced dead at the scene despite medics’ attempts to save his life.
Martinez police arrested Iriarte-Valdez at his home Friday night. Cops used surveillance and physical evidence from the scene to identify him, prosecutors said.
Iriarte-Valdez was arraigned Wednesday in Contra Costa Superior Court, where he pled not guilty to the murder charge.
Judge David Goldstein, who presided over the arraignment, called the suspect “a risk to public safety” and ordered him held without bail.
Iriarte-Valdez is due back in court on Sept. 9 for a scheduling hearing.
The migrant, who has been in the US since 2007, was already in trouble with the law at the time of the alleged murder.
He was granted pretrial release by activist judge Nichelle Holmes after being jailed last Tuesday for allegedly violating the terms of his home detention monitoring in a different residential burglary case.
About 24 hours after Holmes released him, Iriarte-Valdez allegedly stabbed Stewart to death.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Holmes to Contra Costa Superior Court in 2024.
She described herself as a protester in a profile published by her law school alma mater in 2017.
“Coming to work every day and ensuring that justice is served is my way of protesting,” said Holmes, a former a deputy district attorney for Contra Costa County.
Friends told KTVU Stewart had lived in the neighborhood for more than 30 years and just completed renovations at his home.
“He was the most mild-mannered person and the most helpful,” said a friend. “It’s still unbelievable. I look across the street, and I expect him to come out and wave.”
The Department of Homeland Security revealed on Tuesday that Iriarte-Valdez is a “Venezuelan illegal alien” who committed the alleged crime “in sanctuary California.”
The DHS urged Newsom to hold Iriarte-Valdez in custody.
“[Governor Gavin Newsom] must NOT RELEASE this murderer from jail and turn him over to us so we can REMOVE him from our nation,” the department posted on X.
“Sanctuary politicians must stop putting politics above public safety,” DHS told The California Post. “This type of insanity leads to more crimes and more innocent victims.”
On Thursday, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan blasted Newsom and California‘s “sanctuary” laws over Stewart’s alleged murder.
“This person’s dead because Governor Newsom and the state of California puts politics — hatred of President Trump — over public safety,” he said.
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