Deputy kills man during California vacation, then returns to work in Texas, cops say
UPDATE: A former Texas deputy was sentenced to prison after authorities said a father of seven was killed in a hit-and-run while filling up his car’s gas tank on the shoulder of a California freeway, according to officials.
After taking a plea deal, Giovanni Ceja, 31, was given a 15 years to life prison sentence on Tuesday, Jan. 30, a spokesperson for the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office said in an email to McClatchy News.
The original story is below.
A Texas deputy killed a man while on vacation in California, then tried to return to life as usual, authorities told news outlets.
Giovanni Ceja, 31, is facing charges of murder, driving under the influence and hit-and-run causing death, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Ceja was on the job and in uniform on Aug. 14 when the sheriff’s office received a call from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office in California, informing them that they had a warrant for Ceja’s arrest in the hit-and-run death, KENS reported.
Ceja has since been dishonorably discharged and will be extradited to California to face the charges, the sheriff’s office said in a release.
On Aug. 7, Ceja was driving a relative’s car while under the influence of alcohol and fatally hit a man filling up his vehicle with gas on the side of U.S. Interstate 215, the release said.
“Additionally, at the time of Ceja striking the victim, the victim’s wife and one of his children were waiting in a separate vehicle nearby and witnessed the incident unfold,” the release said.
Though Ceja drove away from the scene, the vehicle was damaged and parts were left behind, Sheriff Javier Salazar told KSAT.
Following the deadly collision, Ceja carried out his normal duties as deputy until the sheriff’s office was contacted by California authorities, Salazar told the TV station.
Investigators in California had been in contact with Ceja during their investigation, but the deputy didn’t mention this to anyone at work, the sheriff’s office told the San Antonio Express-News.
In an email to McClatchy News, a spokesperson for the California Highway Patrol confirmed Ceja’s arrest was in relation to a hit-and-run that left Gilberto Sotelo, a 38-year-old Lake Elsinore man and father of seven, dead.
On social media, members of Sotelo’s family have been celebrating the news of charges brought against Ceja, saying “justice will be served!!”
San Antonio is the county seat of Bexar County, and Riverside County is about 55 miles east of Los Angeles.
This story was originally published August 15, 2023 at 9:19 AM with the headline "Deputy kills man during California vacation, then returns to work in Texas, cops say."