Suspect Arrested in Belmont Teen's Death

Belmont police say they’ve arrested a suspect in the deadly stabbing of a local 19-year-old.

According to the Belmont Police Department, Timothy Andrew Guerra was arrested Wednesday in the Central Valley city of Turlock in connection with the killing of Denis Meshchyshyn. Meshchyshyn suffered fatal stab wounds at about 7:30 p.m. Saturday in a parking lot in the 600 block of Masonic Way.

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“Upon arrival [Saturday], first responders found a male victim with multiple stab wounds,” Captain Patrick Halleran said. “The victim... was treated at the scene by Belmont Fire Department paramedics and transported to an area hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.”

After the incident, witnesses came forward to tell cops that they saw Meshchyshyn fighting with a suspect who then ran away west on Masonic Way.

“Belmont Police investigators were able to quickly develop a suspect, 19-year-old Timothy Andrew Guerra, an acquaintance of Meshchyshyn’s who had ties to both Belmont and the Central Valley city of Turlock,” Halleran said.

On Wednesday, investigators headed to Turlock, with an arrested warrant for Guerra. He was located in the late afternoon in a park, where he was taken into custody, according to Halleran.

Guerra was booked into Stanislaus County Jail in Modesto and is awaiting transfer back to San Mateo County, police said.

“We wouldn’t have solved this tragic crime so quickly without the support of our law enforcement partners and the cooperation of many witnesses,” said Belmont Police Chief Dan DeSmidt.