A man accused of gunning down a Moreno Valley resident more than two decades ago pleaded not guilty Wednesday to first-degree murder and other charges.
Corey Tajuan Sampson, 45, of Hesperia was arrested last month following an investigation by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Cold Case Unit into the 2004 slaying of 29-year-old Israel Rangel.
Along with murder, Sampson is charged with sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations. The defendant was arraigned Wednesday before Superior Court Judge Jay Kiel, who scheduled a felony settlement conference for April 17 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
Sampson is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Smith Correctional Facility.
According to sheriff’s Sgt. Jarred Bishop, on the night of Sept. 1, 2004, there was an unspecified confrontation between Sampson and Rangel at a property in the 15000 block of Perris Boulevard, near JFK Drive, in Moreno Valley.
During the encounter, the defendant allegedly pulled a handgun and fired multiple rounds at the victim, mortally wounding him, then fleeing the location, Bishop said.
The gunfire prompted calls to 911, and Rangel was found unconscious but clinging to life. He was taken to the county hospital on the east end of the city, where he died a short time later.
Bishop said Sampson “was identified as a suspect” by homicide detectives at the time, “but there was insufficient evidence to file charges, and the case eventually went cold.”
Last year, the Cold Case Unit began re-examining evidence, resulting in “several leads” that helped uncover previously unknown details on which investigators were able to build a solid case against Sampson and obtain a warrant for his arrest in mid-March, according to the sergeant.
No other information was disclosed, including a possible motive for the shooting.
Sampson has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.