A preliminary hearing date has been set for a Valencia man accused of strangling Brayan “Brian” Jose Rodriguez to death in September..
Christian Alexander Ortiz, 21, charged with murder, appeared Monday in San Fernando Superior Court to set a date for a prelim.
The prelim is scheduled for March 30.
During a preliminary hearing, prosecutors will present evidence in the case, and the defense can respond; the judge can then decide if the case should go to trial.
Ortiz, who remains in custody in the Twin Towers Correctional Facility with bail set at $2 million, was arrested on suspicion of murder by deputies of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station about 3 a.m. on Sept. 25, 2017.
Rodriguez’s body was found inside a closet in a house on the 23600 block of Via Valer, by Valencia Glen Park, sometime before 4 p.m. on Sept. 24.
Rodriguez, 20, identified by prosecutors as the accused man’s boyfriend, was reported missing Sept. 22, prompting several searches to find him throughout that weekend.
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