A young man who allegedly confessed to shooting his childhood friend, a 22-year-old Newhall resident whose body was found in the Angeles National Forest near Sand Canyon, pleaded not guilty Monday to a murder charge.
David Aldana, who is being held on $3 million bail, was ordered to return to court on April 1, when a date is expected to be set for a preliminary hearing to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed to trial.
Aldana, 21, surrendered to authorities at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego County on Feb. 25 and led investigators to Maximiliano Bernal’s body at mile marker 7.98 on Sand Canyon Road, according to sheriff’s officials.
“During their interview, David Aldana agreed to show the investigators where he had discarded the body” and “directed the detectives to the location, where they found the victim’s remains and discovered the victim had sustained a gunshot wound to the upper torso,” said Deputy Lisa Jansen of the Sheriff’s Information Bureau.
Prosecutors said Bernal, a friend of Aldana’s since childhood, was shot Feb. 23 or 24. A possible motive was not disclosed.
If convicted as charged, Aldana faces up to 50 years to life in prison.
— City News Service