A San Pedro man was convicted Wednesday of murdering his estranged wife, whose body was dumped along the Long Beach (710) Freeway nearly 17 years ago.
Jurors deliberated less than a day before finding Carl Mayes, now 45, guilty of second-degree murder for the July 2006 shooting death of Tyquesha Myers, along with possession of a firearm by a felon.
Deputy District Attorney Karen Brako told jurors the 20-year-old woman — who was believed to have been dumped “in the hours of darkness” — was found dead July 15, 2006, just north of the Pacific Coast Highway exit along the 710 Freeway. She had been shot in the head.
The prosecutor said in her closing argument that the victim’s mother last saw Myers alive after leaving her at a barbershop in Gardena where Mayes worked, and noted that a co-worker at the barbershop subsequently told police that Mayes told him that he “put the gun to her head to scare her” and that the “gun went off.” The man said Mayes told him that the woman’s body was in the trunk of his car and that he should report that she had walked away from the barbershop if anyone asked, according to the prosecutor.
A Spider-Man blanket collected from the barbershop was found to have bloodstains that were consistent with the DNA profile of Myers, who had been married to the defendant for just a few months, Brako added.
Defense attorney Adam M. Koppekin questioned the credibility of the prosecution’s key witness, calling him an “opportunist” who offered his account of Mayes’ alleged confession only after he was behind bars himself in an unrelated case and has “zero credibility.”
Mayes’ lawyer also challenged the prosecution’s contention that the woman was shot in the back of the barbershop, and said Long Beach police had “dropped the ball again and again” on the case.
Koppekin urged the jury to acquit his client of both charges.
Mayes has remained behind bars since his September 2019 arrest following a renewed investigation by Long Beach police detectives.
He is due back in a Long Beach courtroom June 6 for sentencing, with the defense expected to file a motion for a new trial.