SJPD Investigates Homicide #23

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

 

 

On June 22, 2025, at approximately 10:38 AM, San José Police Department Officers responded to the 600 block of Wool Creek Drive in the city of San José for a report of a missing person. The missing person, an unhoused adult male, was last seen on June 19, 2025 and his friends and family suspected foul play because his bicycle was found abandoned near a creek trail, a short distance from blood stains and spent bullet casings. Based on the suspicious nature of the disappearance, the case was quickly reassigned to the Homicide and Crime Scene Units.

The Homicide Unit launched a comprehensive, months-long investigation into the mysterious disappearance. On June 25, 2025, the Santa Clara County Crime Lab confirmed that DNA from bloodstains found at the scene matched that of the missing person, further indicating foul play was involved.

Detectives employed every available investigative technique and technology to re-canvass the area, interview witnesses, and execute extensive search warrants in pursuit of a break in the case. During the course of the investigation, they identified two suspect vehicles near the location where the missing person was last seen alive and later determined Juan Flores-Gonzalez, Miguel Cortez, and Julio Espinoza-Chavez to be the primary individuals involved in the disappearance.

Detectives later determined, based on circumstantial evidence, that the missing person had been murdered and was likely buried in the Saratoga Hills area, near Highway 9. Investigators obtained arrest warrants for all three suspects, along with search warrants for their associated residences.

On October 7, 2025, with assistance of the SJPD Covert Response Unit (CRU), all three suspects were arrested in San José and booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail on murder charges.

Two days later, on October 9th, with the assistance of cadaver dogs from the Santa Clara County Search and Rescue Team, Detectives located the remains of an adult male in the Saratoga Hills area, near Highway 9. The remains were exhumed with assistance from the Santa Clara County Crime Lab and Office of the Medical Examiner to confirm the individual’s identity.

The identity of the victim will be released by the Santa Clara County Office of the Medical Examiner pending confirmation.

This incident is being investigated as the City’s 23rd homicide of 2025.

“This case was as complex as it was compelling,” said SJPD Chief Paul Joseph. “Our detectives handled it with care, compassion, and relentless determination. Their work once again shows why our Homicide Unit maintains a 100% solve rate and is a reflection of their unwavering commitment to justice.”

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Martinez #3934 or Detective Jize #4324 of the San José Police Department’s Homicide Unit via email:  3934@sanjoseca.gov and/or 4324@sanjoseca.gov or at 408-277-5283.

Submit crime tips and remain anonymous by using the P3TIPS mobile app, calling the tip line at (408) 947-STOP, or on www.siliconvalleycrimestoppers.org. If the information you submit leads to an arrest, you are eligible for a cash reward from the Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers Program.