HI HI - Reuben Gallegos, 19, Pearl Harbor, 1992 - Man convicted of murder

[meggilyweggily]

http://www.thehawaiichannel.com/news...67/detail.html

HONOLULU -- The attorney general's office has charged a man with murder in the case of a man who disappeared 13 years ago.Reuben Gallegos disappeared along with $80,000 from the Navy Exchange. His body was never found. Gallegos was 19 years old at the time.
[...]
Gallegos was a cashier at the Pearl Harbor Navy Exchange. On May 1, 1992, $80,000 was taken.
Jenaro Torres, a base security guard, was arrested. In his car, officials found stolen money, Gallegos' ID and a gun with spent rounds. Despite several efforts, Gallegos' body was never found.

I can't even find a picture of Reuben, so I can't profile him on the Charley Project. I wish I could. He deserves to be remembered, and this is the first time I've even heard of the guy.

[mysteriew]

This is an interesting story. They had enough evidence back then to convict him of robbery, but not of kidnapping? I understand that it difficult to convict someone of murder when you don't have a body, but why couldn't they get him on kidnapping? That likely would have gotten him a longer sentence than robbery. Wonder what the evidence is is it isn't the his body or an eyewitness? DNA or a forgotten fingerprint? A murder weapon?
I hope they catch this guy soon.

[michelle]

Originally Posted by mysteriew

This is an interesting story.I hope they catch this guy soon.

I hope they do to...

[docwho3]

Originally Posted by meggilyweggily

. . .I can't even find a picture of Reuben, so I can't profile him on the Charley Project. I wish I could. He deserves to be remembered, and this is the first time I've even heard of the guy.

Maybe you can find relatives to get a pic. There is only one name exactly like his listed in the yahoo people search so maybe they are related.

[meggilyweggily]

Originally Posted by docwho3

Maybe you can find relatives to get a pic. There is only one name exactly like his listed in the yahoo people search so maybe they are related.

I shouldn't want to make an unsolicited contact to a relative, though. A lot of them have a very hard time talking about the disappearance and just want to be left alone.

Maybe there'll be more news about the upcoming trial, with that, a picture of Reuben.

[Rle7]

The defense team in a 15-year-old murder case hopes to prove in court that the murder victim is not dead, but only missing.

Not only is he missing, but 19-year-old Ruben Gallegos also was a willing accomplice in the 1992 robbery that caused his disappearance, Deputy Public Defender Ed Harada argued during opening arguments.

Jenaro Torres, 58, faces a second-degree murder charge for the May 1, 1992, disappearance of Gallegos. The body was never found, but Torres was later found with Gallegos' belongings and $78,000. The jury trial began yesterday morning in Circuit Court.

http://starbulletin.com/2007/03/14/news/story08.html

[Bobbisangel]

Does anyone know how this trial went?

[meggilyweggily]

He was convicted. http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/...gos_ruben.html

[Richard]

Twenty years ago...