Police: Marijuana money may be motivation for Clearlake killing

An investigation into the shooting death of a Lake County man whose remains were found last fall in woods outside of Clearlake has led to two arrests, and Clearlake police said they expect to take additional people into custody in the case.

The victim, Guillermo Figueroa, 36, of Hidden Valley Lake, a married father of three, was shot once in the head.

Clearlake Police Sgt. Nick Bennett on Wednesday said detectives believe the motive for the slaying involved a large amount of marijuana money Figueroa was believed to be carrying.

The state Attorney General’s Office has charged two Clearlake residents in connection with the death. During a Lake County Superior Court hearing on Friday, Gary Williams, 30, was charged with seven felony counts including homicide, killing the man while robbing him, and related charges connected to the slaying, according to Clearlake police.

Crystal Pearls, 41, was charged with seven felonies, including making terrorist threats, dissuading a witness and burglary, police said.

They both remained in custody Wednesday at the Lake County Jail, where they’d been housed for about two months in connection with an unrelated theft of a travel trailer.

They became persons of interest early in the homicide investigation, Bennett said.

Figueroa was a suspected marijuana grower who paid people to let him use their property, Bennett said.

Police believe one of Figueroa’s marijuana gardens had been ripped off and he was known to be carrying a large amount of cash, planning to buy back the stolen plants, Bennett said.

Figueroa’s wife reported him missing in late October. During the initial investigation, a sedan registered to the missing man was found abandoned in northwest Clearlake.

The case turned into a homicide investigation in late November when a northwest Clearlake resident called police to say his dog had come home with a skull.

Police headed into nearby woods with a cadaver dog, which found the remains of a body.

DNA testing in late December identified the body as Figueroa’s, and Clearlake police reported the death as a homicide.

Clearlake detectives are working on the ongoing investigation with Lake County sheriff’s detectives and the state Department of Justice.

Police officials asked anyone with information to contact Detective Ryan Peterson at the Clearlake Police Department at 994-8251, ext. 320, or Department of Justice Agent Heather Nelsen at 510-515-2673.