The Valencia man accused of strangling Brayan “Brian” Jose Rodriguez to death in September who has seen the date for his preliminary hearing pushed back was told to set that day a month from now.
Christian Alexander Ortiz, 21, charged with murder, appeared Monday in San Fernando Superior Court to set a date for the hearing.
Now Ortiz is expected to set a date for his prelim on May 30, Ricardo Santiago, spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office told The Signal Monday.
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.