A Riverside jury convicted Contreras of murdering Alfonso Vera.

A first-degree murder conviction and a firearm-use enhancement are the jury's judgment. A Monday sentencing setting is calendar, not a sentence. On Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, a Riverside jury found Luis Contreras, 52, guilty of first-degree murder and a firearm-use enhancement for the 2005 slaying of his cousin Alfonso Vera, 38, after about one full day of deliberation. Sentencing is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, on an expedited request by the defense.

The killing was the evening of June 14, 2005, in Riverside. Contreras, then 31, joined cousin Fernando Contreras at a party hosted by cousin Alfonso Vera on Doane Avenue near Wells Avenue. A dispute over a girlfriend, Darlene, led Vera to try to intervene. Luis Contreras had a firearm. He fired 13 shots at Vera at close range, killing him, and fled in a Toyota Camry. Those are the reported facts of the 2005 killing that went to the jury. They are the record behind Thursday's verdict. They are not a sentence.

He allegedly fled toward the Mexican border within 48 hours and remained a fugitive until Mexican National Police arrested him in Mexicali on July 8, 2024, on a fugitive warrant, with help from a U.S. Marshals task force. He was extradited weeks later. A prior fugitive period is history of process. It is not a new finding. Riverside County Superior Court Judge Jerry Yang presided. Closing arguments were Wednesday, and the jury deliberated about one full day. Contreras is held without bail at Robert Presley Jail. The sentencing hearing is set for Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, after an expedited request by the defense. No sentence has been imposed. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.