Ramon Escobar pictured in 2018 (Harris County Jail), Juan Villanueva pictured in 2023 (California Department of Corrections)
A 52-year-old inmate already behind bars for the 2018 serial murders of several homeless men in California allegedly strangled his convicted child rapist cellmate to death because he smelled bad.
The murder case against Ramon Alberto Escobar that was filed back in August over the Feb. 24 strangulation slaying of 53-year-old Juan Villanueva at North Kern State Prison will go to trial, a judge in Kern County ruled on Oct. 10, according to court records reviewed by Law&Crime.
Escobar allegedly said “Hey, I’m sorry Jenkins […] I killed him” when a prison officer came to his cell and found Villanueva unresponsive months ago. The inmate for life blamed Villanueva’s strangulation death behind bars on his “foul smell,” local NBC affiliate KGET reported.
Escobar reportedly left the following note explaining the motive in bizarre detail: “1) Didn’t want to shower or bird bath right. 2) Didn’t wanna clean cell. 3) Stank like pure s—. 4) Didn’t wanna move I asked 2 or 3 times. 5) Didn’t wanna take me serious so please meet the devil ha, ha.”
The two felony charges against Escobar are first-degree murder and assault by a life prisoner with force likely to produce great bodily injury. When Kern County District Attorney’s Office announced the charges on Sept. 18, the office noted that Escobar is a prolific serial killer with seven murder convictions on his record, including five murders in Los Angeles County, California, and two Harris County, Texas, murders.
Escobar, from El Salvador and deported at least six times, infamously murdered his 61-year-old aunt Dinora Escobar and 65-year-old uncle Rogelio Escobar in Houston before traveling to Los Angeles and murdering five more people using either a baseball bat or bolt cutters.
The killer was himself homeless when he beat the California victims to death in Los Angeles and Santa Monica as they slept, whether on the street or a beach. The murdered victims were identified as 51-year-old Juan Antonio Ramirez, 39-year-old Steven Cruze, 59-year-old Kelvin Williams, 24-year-old Branden Ridout, and 63-year-old Jorge Martinez.
More Law&Crime coverage: Infamous suspected serial killer violently taken out by cellmate while serving life in Texas prison
In February, prison officials said that Juan Villanueva was found dead in his cell on Feb. 24, a Friday morning, roughly three weeks after he was incarcerated in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to serve a sentence of life with a chance at parole. Villanueva was convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child under the age of 14.
Escobar, on the other hand, has been behind bars in state prison since May 6, 2022, when he was sentenced to life in prison for two murders without parole. More life sentences without parole followed later on that year. In total, Escobar was sentenced for five California murders and seven attempted murders.
Ramon Escobar pictured in 2022 (California Department of Corrections)
In Texas, Escobar in 2018 admitted murdering his aunt and uncle, whose bodies he claimed to throw away in the trash. His relatives’ remains have never been located.
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
