Jose Raul Corrales with his wife and grandson. Corrales was shot to death in West Long Beach on Oct. 9, 2018. Photo courtesy Jerry Amaya-Rodriguez.
Jose Raul Corrales with his wife and grandson. Corrales was shot to death in West Long Beach on Oct. 9, 2018. Photo courtesy Jerry Amaya-Rodriguez.

Police announced Friday they have arrested two men in connection with the Oct. 9 shooting death of 69-year-old grandfather Jose Raul Corrales in West Long Beach.

Rhyan Burrell, 20, of Lynwood and Terrel Warren, 23, of Long Beach were both arrested on suspicion of murder, carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle and a gang enhancement.

Burrell was also arrested on suspicion of discharging a firearm from a vehicle and being an ex-felon in possession of a firearm. Both are being held on a $2.04 million bail.

Friends and family gather in front of Admiral Kidd Park along Santa Fe Avenue for a vigil Friday evening for 69-year-old Jose Raul Corrales, who was shot and killed Tuesday afternoon in a drive-by, while watering his front yard near the corner of Summit Street and Canal Avenue, on Friday Oct. 12, 2018. Photo by Stephen Carr.
Many of those gathered carried signs asking for peace or remember Jose Raul Corrales, who was shot and killed Tuesday afternoon in a drive-by. Photo by Stephen Carr.

Police said detectives and a S.W.A.T team on Friday executed a search warrant in Lynwood, where they arrested the men and found three firearms and ammunition. A vehicle believed to be involved in the shooting was also impounded, police said.

“Detectives have determined this murder is gang motivated and believe the murder may be correlated to an altercation which occurred earlier that afternoon at Cabrillo High School,” a statement from police said.

Police responded to a call about a fight at Cabrillo around 10:50 a.m. on Oct. 9, police spokesman Alvino Herrera said.

“When officers arrived, a large crowd was gathered around an unknown number of students involved in an altercation,” Herrera said in an email. “When the students involved observed the responding officers, they ran to another location on the campus and continued the altercation.”

Officers broke up the fight with the help of school staff and one boy and one man were detained.

In now-deleted Instagram videos tagged at Cabrillo High School and posted that week, dozens of students could be seen rushing toward each other and fighting in a chaotic scene that lasted for nearly a minute before school staff are seen intervening.

Corrales was shot and killed around 3 p.m. while he was outside watering his lawn near the corner of Summit Street and Canal Avenue.

One of the granddaughters morn the death of her grandfather Jose Raul Corrales the day after he was killed in Long Beach October 10, 2018. Photo by Thomas R Cordova

One grandson, Bryan Aguilar, 15, said Corrales was outside with his grandkids when a car of young men drove up and asked where they were from. When the cousins said they weren’t part of any gang, the driver of the car drove away, made a U-turn, and briefly parked before opening fire on the group outside the Corrales house.

“Evidence suggests Mr. Corrales was not the intended target and detectives believe it was gang motivated,” police spokeswoman Arantxa Chavarria said.

Detectives will present the case to the District Attorney’s office early next week.

Family of slain grandfather asks the westside to ‘stop the violence’

 

Valerie Osier is the Social Media & Newsletter Manager for the Long Beach Post. Reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @ValerieOsier