A Canyon Country man accused of murder in the shooting death of his father is due back in court next year, according to officials with the District Attorney’s Office.
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Juan Mejia, 31, of Canyon Country, had the date for his preliminary hearing moved to Jan. 9, an official said Tuesday.
Mejia stands accused in the shooting of his 53-year-old father, who goes by the same name.
An investigation by Sheriff’s Station detectives resulted in Mejia being listed as a suspect within days.
At approximately 11:47 p.m. on May 16, he produced a gun and shot his father in the head, according to a Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau detective.
The shooting took place at the 19000 block of Newhouse Street in Canyon Country, at the elder Mejia’s residence.
Homicide Bureau detectives worked with Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station detectives to find the younger Juan Mejia.
After a special bulletin was put out by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Mejia was found the week after the shooting.
The public’s help was part of the reason why deputies were able to find and detain their suspect for questioning, according to a sergeant with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.
“We got information that he was over in the Canyon Country area,” according to Sgt. Rich Nagler, at the time of Mejia’s arrest. “And when we got over there, we found him and detained him.”
Detectives believe the suspect, arrived home intoxicated and began to argue with his parents at their home.
The weapon used in the crime has not yet been recovered by Sheriff’s Station deputies, according to previous reports.
Mejia first answered the charges in May, when he pleaded not guilty to first degree murder.
His preliminary hearing was initially scheduled for June 11, His first preliminary hearing was scheduled for Aug. 1; it was then rescheduled for Sept. 16; then to Tuesday; and now January.
At a preliminary hearing, the case is presented to a judge, who decides if a trial is merited.
Mejia is being held in lieu of $2,055,000 bail at the Pitchess Detention Center.
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