An unlicensed bail agent accused of gunning down a knife-wielding fugitive in front of Palm Springs police officers pleaded not guilty Friday to murder and other charges.
Fabian Hector Herrera, 36, was arrested April 23 on suspicion of shooting 33-year-old David Spann at 1:50 that morning at a residence in the 100 block of East Via Escuela, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
Herrera was arraigned at the Banning Justice Center before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Alfonso Fernandez, who scheduled a felony settlement conference for May 11 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
Along with murder, Herrera is charged with being a convicted felon in possession of both a gun and ammunition, and possessing body armor with a previous violent felony conviction, along with multiple sentence-enhancing allegations.
Herrera, who’s being held in lieu of $2 million bail at the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside, faces a potential life sentence if convicted as charged.
Sheriff’s Sgt. Richard Carroll said that while Spann was wanted by a bail agency, there was no warrant for his arrest issued by a law enforcement agency.
Herrera, meanwhile, was “not properly licensed” as a bail agent, and was also prohibited from possessing firearms due to his criminal history, according to sheriff’s officials.
Authorities on Tuesday circulated a photo of another unlicensed bail agent who is accused of providing unspecified help to Herrera, and said an arrest warrant had been issued for 53-year-old Lisa Vargas.
Deputies were sent to the Via Escuela location regarding a panic alarm that was followed by a second call from the homeowner who said someone was trying to break into his residence. Moments later, a bail agent later identified as Herrera called police to let them know he was at the scene trying to arrest a fugitive, saying that the suspect was holding a knife, according to the Palm Springs Police Department.
Officers arrived and contacted the suspect, who had a knife and refused orders to comply, prompting an officer to use a stun gun on the man, but he continued to defy officers’ orders, police said.
Herrera then allegedly shot the man, who was pronounced dead at the scene despite life-saving measures performed by first responders, according to police. No Palm Springs police officer fired a weapon, officials said.
Because Palm Springs police were present during the shooting, investigators from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Force Investigations Detail were called in to spearhead the investigation, and later arrested Herrera.
Herrera has two prior felony convictions, both for assault with a deadly weapon, one in Los Angeles County and the other in Riverside County, court records show.