3 teens arrested in connection with pizza delivery driver’s slaying in Stanton

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The victim, Juan Cristalinas, pictured second from the right, was 49 years old and from Santa Ana, according to OCSD. Omar Cristilnas, his youngest son, told the Orange County Register his father was “a kind and hardworking man.” Authorities identified three suspects in the case more than a year after Cristalinas was killed. (Cristalinas photo courtesy of GoFundMe)

Three teenagers were arrested Wednesday, July 5, on suspicion of murder in the 2022 killing of a pizza delivery driver who apparently tried to help an elderly man being assaulted in Stanton, authorities said.

Anaheim residents Adrian Castaneda, 19, and Damian Ivan Mayorga, 18, as well as  Garden Grove resident Henry Diep Le, 19, are accused of fatally shooting Juan Cristalinas last June at the 7000 block of Lessue Avenue, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release.

Cristalinas, who was 49 and lived in Santa Ana, had been trying to help a 76-year-old man who was apparently being beaten by a group of men demanding money, the release said. The 76-year-old man was also shot but survived.

It was not immediately clear whether the suspects knew any of the victims.

“Juan leaves behind three sons, a loving wife, and three beautiful grandchildren. He was a hardworking, loving man. He had two jobs and spent his weekends working on cars as a mechanic. He was the kind of person who always stood up for others and wasn’t scared of doing the right thing,” a GoFundMe set up for Cristalinas said.

Castaneda, Mayorga, and Le were all being held at Orange County Jail as of Thursday evening, according to jail records.

Bail was set at $1 million each. Le was due in court Thursday, while Castaneda and Mayorga were expected to appear Friday.

 

Pizza delivery driver killed, elderly man wounded in Stanton neighborhood

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