Portland Homicide: Accused Killer Laughed When Informed Of Charges

Alex Ortiz, the 33-year-old man charged with murdering a man and sexually assaulting two women in separate incidents, made his first appearance in court Monday morning. He had laughed when informed of the charges against him, according to court documents.

Ortiz was arrested Friday night in Hillsboro. He is accused of raping a woman there in February, as well as raping a woman in Northeast Portland the same day he allegedly murdered a man.

When he was booked into jail, court documents indicate that he laughed as he was informed of the charges.

In court Monday, a lawyer entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf.

Portland Police say that the 33-year-old Ortiz was arrested on the 700 block of Southeast Cedar Street in Hillsboro in a joint operation by Hillsboro Police, the Washington County Tactical Negotiation Team, and officers from Portland.

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Police say that Ortiz killed Eleazar "Tony" Herrera Villegas, 59, who had had been discovered murdered in his apartment Monday February 27, on the 8399 block of Northeast Sandy near his Jack Russell terrier, Max.

Max was also dead.

While investigating, detectives discovered that earlier in the day there had been a sexual assault in The Red Roof Inn near where Villegas had been killed. They developed information linking Ortiz to both the sexual assault and the murder.

They also discovered that he has been linked to the sexual assault in Hillsboro last month.

Ortiz was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center for Aggravated Murder, two separate counts of Rape in the first degree, Aggravated Animal Abuse in the first degree, and an Oregon State Parole Violation.

Photos Portland Police