See Update No. 2 on Page 2 with fugitive Henry Nunez-Godinez being charged with the murder of his roommate and co-worker Chang-Ho Jung, who was identified in Update No. 1 on the next page.
ORIGINAL POST, DEC. 16, 4:39 P.M.: The Orange County Sheriff's Department is seeking the public's help in finding a “person of interest” in a homicide case from late last Wednesday.
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Deputies were dispatched to a Laguna Hills residence around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday to check on one of the occupants. There they found a dead man and evidence that led investigators to conclude he may have been murdered, according to the sheriff's department.
Henry Nunez-Godinez, a 22-year-old who sometimes drops the Godinez, is wanted in connection with the death of the unidentified man, who was Godinez's co-worker and roommate, according to a sheriff's statement.
“Henry Nunez-Godinez is a person of interest in this case,” reads the release. “… Mr. Godinez is Nicaraguan and may be traveling to Nicaragua via Mexico.”
He was last seen Saturday, Dec. 7, and may have left the area in a 2005 black VW Jetta with the license plate number 6KJM618. He is described as Hispanic with black hair, brown eyes and a slender build.
Anyone who knows where Godinez is should contact sheriff's Investigator Justin Montano at 714.647.7046 or the department's main line at 714.647.7000.
UPDATE NO. 1, DEC. 18, 11:45 A.M.: Chang-Ho Jung, 39, has been identified as the man found dead late last Wednesday night, Dec. 11, in his Laguna Hills apartment in the 25200 block of Stockport Street, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Department and coroner's officials.
His cause of death has not been released.
Jung's roommate Henry Nunez-Godinez, 22, remains at large and a person of interest in the suspected homicide, according to sheriff's officials.
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UPDATE NO. 2, DEC. 31, 1:12 P.M.: The Orange County Sheriff's Department (OCSD) released a second photo (above) of Henry Nunez-Godinez, and that agency and the Orange County District Attorney's office (OCDA) jointly announced that the 22-year-old Nicaraguan has gone from “person of interest” to prime suspect in the murder of Chang-Ho Jung.
As had been done when Nunez-Godinez was only wanted for questioning, law enforcement is seeking the public's help in locating him now that he has been charged with strangling and murdering his roommate/co-worker. Authorities still believe he may have fled to Nicaragua.
Nunez-Godinez, who is now the subject of a $1 million arrest warrant, is charged with one felony count of murder and faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in state prison if convicted, according to the OCDA.
He was an attendant and 39-year-old Jung was a sushi chef at the same Lake Forest restaurant. When Jung did not show up for work, owners of the restaurant went to the Laguna Hills apartment he shared with Nunez-Godinez and discovered the body on Dec. 11, according to the OCDA and OCSD.
The sheriff's department launched a homicide investigation, and Nunez-Godinez is now accused of using a cord to strangle Jung, according to the agencies, which note the OCDA filed the murder charge on Thursday.
Besides there being no sign of Nunez-Godinez, his black, 2005 Volkswagon Jetta with license plate #6KJM618 has also not been located.
Anyone with information regarding the homicide or Nunez-Godinez's whereabouts is asked to call OCSD investigators at 714.647.7046 or 714.647.7000. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855.847.8227 or online at occrimestoppers.org.
The OCDA issued the following press release today in Spanish:
31 de diciembre, 2013
Caso # 13HF3771
OFICIALES DE LA LEY PIDEN AYUDA DEL PÚBLICO PARA LOCALIZAR FUGITIVO ACUSADO DE ASESINAR UN CHEF DE SUSHI, SU COMPAÑERO DE CUARTO Y TRABAJO
*Se sospecha que el acusado posiblemente huyó a NicaraguaSANTA ANA – Oficiales de la ley piden ayuda del público para localizar a un fugitivo, quien se sospecha de huir a Nicaragua, acusado de asesinar a un jefe de cocina de sushi que era su compañero de cuarto y trabajo. Henry Nunez-Godinez, de 22 años de edad, es acusado de un delito mayor por homicidio, y enfrenta una sentencia máxima de 25 años hasta cadena perpetua en prisión estatal si es condenado. Se ha registrado una orden de fianza de $1 millón para su detención.
A la vez que ocurrió el asesinato, la víctima Chang-Ho Jung, de 39 años de edad, era un jefe de cocina de sushi y el acusado era un empleado en el mismo restaurante en la ciudad de Lake Forest. El acusado y la víctima también eran compañeros de cuarto.
El 11 de diciembre del 2013, Nunez-Godinez es acusado de estrangular a Jung con una cuerda, matándolo, en el apartamento que compartían en la ciudad de Laguna Hills.
Los dueños del restaurante descubrieron el cadáver de la víctima después de ir a verlo cuando falto al trabajo. El Departamento del Alguacil del Condado de Orange (OCSD) inició una investigación de homicidio. Basado en la investigación del OCSD, Nunez-Godinez fue acusado del asesinato por el Fiscal del Condado de Orange el 26 de diciembre del 2013.
Se ha registrado una orden de fianza de $1 millón para el arresto de Nunez-Godinez, y los investigadores del OCSD continúan en sus esfuerzos para localizarlo. Se sospecha que Nunez-Godinez posiblemente huyó hacia el país de Nicaragua a través de México. El vehículo de Nunez-Godinez, un Volkswagen del 2005, Jetta, negro, con la placa #6KJM618 tampoco no ha sido localizado.
Se solicita a todas las personas con información sobre este caso o la ubicación de Nunez-Godinez a que se comuniquen con los investigadores del OCSD, a los números (714) 647-7046 o (714) 647-7000. Se reciben llamadas anónimas con información sobre este caso al número 855-TIP-OCCS (855-847-8227), de Orange County Crime Stoppers, o al sitio web, occrimestoppers.org. Dos fotografías del acusado serán disponibles a la prensa bajo petición.
El caso será procesado por el fiscal asistente Ebrahim Baytieh de la Unidad de Homicidio.
Email: mc****@oc******.com. Twitter: @MatthewTCoker. Follow OC Weekly on Twitter @ocweekly or on Facebook!
OC Weekly Editor-in-Chief Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before “graduating” to OC Weekly in 1995 as the alternative newsweekly’s first calendar editor.