Detective tells of botched drug deal in fatal Modesto shooting

A police detective on Tuesday revealed details of an apparent botched drug deal in north Modesto that led to the shooting death of a 19-year-old Riverbank man.

Damian Villavicencio was shot to death Dec. 11, 2013, behind the Velvet Grill & Creamery restaurant on McHenry Avenue.

Lamar Oldham and Isaiah Stafford are accused of murder in Villavicencio’s death. The defendants’ preliminary hearing continued Tuesday with testimony from Modesto police Detective Ra Pouv.

Not long after the shooting, the homicide detective questioned Luisa Riley, the other defendant charged with murder in the shooting death. She is being prosecuted separately.

Riley met with her boyfriend, Stafford, in the parking lot behind the Velvet Grill. She said her boyfriend was meeting some of his friends there to buy marijuana, according to the detective. They waited for 15 to 20 minutes before a car arrived.

The car, with two people inside, pulled into the parking lot and stopped in front of Riley and Stafford. They both approached the car, then Stafford got into the back seat on the passenger side. The back door stayed open as Stafford’s feet were on the ground outside the car while he sat in the back seat behind the passenger.

Pouv testified that Riley said the front passenger asked Stafford to show the money, and her boyfriend asked the passenger to show the marijuana. The passenger replied “Nah, bro, nah,” according to Riley’s statement to police.

Then the car began to speed away, and Stafford fell out. Riley told the detective that Stafford fired the first shot at the car as he fell. Pouv testified that Riley said she didn’t see the gun as it fired, but she could tell her boyfriend fired first at the car.

When the car came to a stop in the parking lot, Oldham fired a gun four or five times at the car, according to Riley’s statement to police. “She said the gunshots from Mr. Oldham sounded louder,” Pouv testified.

The three defendants ran from the shooting scene to a nearby apartment complex where Oldham lived on the top floor, according to Riley. The defendants later were captured by police.

Mark Sullivan, Stafford’s attorney, described Pouv’s testimony about what Riley said as coming from the “poisonous tree” of evidence violations. Sullivan objected to the testimony, telling the judge that Riley asked about needing an attorney present during police questioning.

Pouv testified that he advised Riley of her rights twice, and Riley said she understood her rights. Riley told the detective she would talk to him as long as she felt comfortable about the questioning.

The defendants also face charges of attempted murder and attempted robbery in connection with the shooting. Another 19-year-old Riverbank man was with Villavicencio when they stumbled into the nearby McDonald’s, bleeding and saying they had been shot, witnesses told police. The other man survived the shooting.

A man who tried to revive Villavicencio said the victim was holding what looked like marijuana when he came into the restaurant.

Modesto police Detective Ray Bennett testified that investigators found a Chevrolet Corsica riddled with bullet holes in the parking lot. The car was stuck, high-centered on top of a curb in the parking lot.

Testimony in the hearing is expected to continue Wednesday in Stanislaus Superior Court. At the conclusion of the hearing, the judge will determine whether there is enough evidence for the defendants to stand trial.

This story was originally published January 27, 2015 at 6:47 PM with the headline "Detective tells of botched drug deal in fatal Modesto shooting."