Carjack-Murder Suspect Was Convicted Car Thief: How Deputies Tracked Him Down

ALAMEDA COUNTY, CA – A convicted car thief has been charged with murder for allegedly carjacking a man's pickup truck in San Lorenzo in unincorporated Alameda County on Thursday morning and then running over the victim and killing him, prosecutors said.

Victor Martinez Alvarez, 42, is scheduled to be arraigned on the murder charge in Alameda County Superior Court in Dublin today. He also faces two counts of carjacking and one count of evading an officer, causing injury.

Prosecutors also allege that in separate cases in 2015, Alvarez was convicted of unlawfully taking a vehicle and of evading an officer.

Alameda County sheriff's Deputy Nicholas Paxton wrote in a probable cause statement that James Figueroa, 46, started his 2008 GMC Sierra pickup truck to warm it up outside his home in the 15000 block of Via Del Sol at about 5:30 a.m. Thursday and then returned to his home to retrieve some personal items.

When Figueroa returned to his vehicle, a suspect — later identified as Alvarez — was in the driver's seat. Figueroa tried to stop Alvarez but was thrown to the ground. Alvarez ran him over with Figueroa's own truck, Paxton wrote.

Figueroa was taken to Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley, authorities said, but died there later that day.

Paxton wrote that Alvarez drove away from the scene in the truck and was followed by an accomplice who was driving a 2003 GMC Sierra pickup truck that had been stolen out of San Leandro earlier on Thursday morning.

Figueroa's cellphone was still inside his pickup and investigators obtained a search warrant so that they could track his phone via cellphone pings.

At 3:23 p.m. Thursday, investigators began receiving ping data indicating that Figueroa's cellphone was in the vicinity of the 8900 block of Holly Street in East Oakland, according to Paxton.

At 5:08 p.m. Thursday, investigators received more cellphone data indicating that Alvarez was near 102nd Avenue in East Oakland in the 2003 GMC Sierra pickup so they tried to stop the vehicle, Paxton wrote.

But Alvarez failed to yield and a pursuit was initiated, during which his alleged accomplice bailed from the pickup and was detained by deputies and arrested on unrelated stolen vehicle offenses, sheriff's officials said.

Alvarez kept driving and crashed into a pole at 92nd Avenue and San Leandro Street, where he got out and tried to carjack another person before he finally was arrested by deputies and Oakland police, Paxton wrote.

Alvarez suffered minor injuries and was treated at Eden Medical Center before he was taken to Santa Rita Jail in Dublin to be booked, authorities said.

Figueroa's pickup truck was later recovered intact in East Oakland, sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Ray Kelly said.

On Saturday morning, investigators searched the stolen 2003 GMC Sierra and found Figueroa's cellphone, car keys and other items that belonged to him, Paxton wrote.

When investigators interviewed Alvarez on Saturday he admitted to finding Figueroa's pickup truck unattended and still running and that he stole it and ultimately ran over Figueroa, Paxton wrote.

A GoFundMe account was set up for Figueroa and can be found at: James "Kimo" Figueroa.

"Kimo fought for his life after he was run down by a suspect stealing his truck on Thursday morning, but was taken off life support hours later," the GoFundMe organizer wrote. "I am asking for your help for Kimo's final arrangements, and any money left over will go to Andrew and Jonah."

Details on the fundraiser can be viewed here.

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--Bay City News contributed to this report/Images via Shutterstock, GoFundMe, ACSO, Pixabay