From left: Margarita Jimenez and Jorge Garfias (Ventura County District Attorney) and Yanelly Vargas (Camino Del Sol Funeral Home).
A California man and woman are headed to prison after a jury found them guilty of the murder of his ex-girlfriend after they lured her out of a bar on St. Patrick”s Day last year and shot her to death.
Margarita Jimenez, 34, and Jorge Garfias, 38, were convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Yanelly Vargas, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office. The ordeal began on March 17, 2024, when Garfias received a phone call from the 35-year-old Vargas as he and Jimenez watched TV, the Ventura County Star reported.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Jimenez heard a female’s voice on the other line and confronted Garfias about who he was speaking with. Garfias admitted it was Vargas, his ex-girlfriend, who was out celebrating St. Patrick’s Day at a nightclub in Oxnard, some 60 miles west of Los Angeles. Jimenez reportedly testified she was “tired of the drama.” She said she felt as if Garfias and Vargas were rekindling their relationship.
“I felt anger, I felt betrayed, I felt lied to,” Jimenez testified.
Garfias and Jimenez drove to the nightclub and lured her to his truck via text. They drove Vargas to an alley in an industrial area where an argument turned physical and the suspects beat the victim, prosecutors said. Vargas got out of the truck and tried to run away but the suspects followed her in Garfias’ truck.
She confronted Vargas.
“I was sad, mad,” Jimenez said. “I was hostile with her.”
Surveillance video showed Jimenez exit the truck, run after Vargas and shoot her dead in the chest. She tried to shoot her again but the gun jammed, prosecutors said. Neighbors called 911 when they saw a man and a woman arguing and dispatchers heard the gunshot. Cops rushed to the scene and found Vargas dead. In addition to the gunshot wound, she also suffered from blunt force trauma and signs of strangulation.
Investigators found a blood trial, a spent 9 mm shell casing and acrylic nails that were later tied to Jimenez. There was also a blood-stained yellow rope near the victim, prosecutors said.
Cops arrested the suspects about two weeks after the murder.
A trial on special allegations and aggravating factors starts Monday.
