2009 Santa Ana murder victim identified as a 14-year-old from Reno

IRVINE, CA (July 25, 2024): UPDATE – The Irvine Police Department was notified a previously unidentified victim of homicide in 2009 was a missing person from Reno, Nevada. Through DNA, the victim has been identified as 14-year-old Marcia Shirree Thomas.

“The Irvine Police Department has been committed to this case since 2009. Marcia’s family remains in our thoughts during this difficult time. We appreciate the agencies that have assisted in providing crucial information to support the case and the family,” said Police Chief Michael Kent.

On November 15, 2022, Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman, 36, was convicted by a jury of one felony count of first-degree murder and the special circumstance of murder in the commission of a kidnapping. The second defendant, Gabino Valdivia-Guzman, will be tried in the future.

Anyone with information about this investigation is asked to contact Detective John Sanders at (949) 724-7233. Questions about the criminal case should be directed to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office Director of Public Affairs, Kimberly Edds, at (714)347-8405.

2010 Press Release

IRVINE, CA (November 5, 2010): Two brothers were charged today with the 2009 strangling-murder of an unidentified woman after being linked to the crime through DNA. Gabino Valdivia-Guzman, 31, Costa Mesa, and Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman, 24, Santa Ana, are each charged with one felony count of special circumstances murder with sentencing enhancements for murder during the commission of a kidnapping. The defendants face a minimum sentence of life in state prison without the possibility of parole. They are being held without bail and are scheduled to be arraigned today, Nov. 9, 2010, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana. The time is to be determined.

The victim, Jane Doe, has yet to be identified. Law enforcement is seeking the public’s help in identifying her.

Late on the night of Sept. 4, 2009, brothers Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman and Gabino Valdivia-Guzman are accused of picking up Jane Doe in Santa Ana. Gabino Valdivia-Guzman is accused of driving the van and Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman is accused of sitting in the back, out of sight from the victim. Jane Doe began to panic after getting into the van and discovering the second man inside. When Jane Doe began to scream and attempted to get away, Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman is accused of pulling her into the back of the van and repeatedly beating her in the face and neck as she struggled to escape. Gabino Valdivia-Guzman is accused of continuing to drive as Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman physically assaulted the victim.

Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman is accused of strangling and murdering Jane Doe. Gabino Valdivia-Guzman is accused of driving his brother and the victim to an industrial business parking lot at the 1800 block of Kettering in Irvine. The two defendants are accused of dumping the victim’s body in the parking lot, dousing her with gasoline from a canister in the van, and setting her body on fire. They are accused of taking the victim’s cell phone and fleeing the scene.

Early on the morning of Sept. 5, 2009, Jane Doe’s partially burned body was discovered by employees showing up for work. IPD responded to the scene and began investigating this case. Evidence was collected at the scene, including DNA from under Jane Doe’s fingernails. That DNA sample was entered into the Orange County Crime Lab database.

On Nov. 5, 2010, Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman’s DNA was linked to the murder stemming from a 2009 Orange County misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence. IPD detectives located Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman on Nov. 6, 2010, in a shopping center on the corner of Main Street and McFadden Avenue in Santa Ana, where he was taken into custody. His older brother, Gabino Valdivia-Guzman, was with him. IPD determined through subsequent investigation that Gabino Valdivia-Guzman was also involved in the murder and he was also taken into custody.

2009 Press Release

IRVINE, CA (September 5, 2009): Irvine Police are investigating the death of a woman who was found lying in the parking lot of a closed business.

At about 8:30 a.m. on Saturday September 5, 2009 Irvine Police were summoned to the parking lot of a closed business in the 1800 block of Kettering to investigate the report of a “person down”, who appeared to have been burned and lifeless. Responding officers arrived at the location and did in fact locate a deceased victim lying burned in the parking lot. The victim appeared to have been an African American female in her mid-twenties.

Preliminarily, it appeared the victim was burned in the parking lot hours before police were notified. Detectives have been called to investigate, as the nature of the victim’s death appears suspicious.

The victim’s identity is not yet known. The Coroner’s Division of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department will be conducting an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

The person who reported this incident to the police was a passer-by who worked in the area, which is predominantly business and industrial. The victim did not appear to have been associated with the business where she was found.

About Irvine

Since its incorporation in 1971, Irvine has become a nationally recognized city, with a population of 310,250 that spans 66 square miles and is recognized as one of America’s safest and most successful master-planned urban communities. Top-rated educational institutions, an enterprising business atmosphere, sound environmental stewardship, and respect for diversity all contribute to Irvine’s enviable quality of life. This family-friendly city features more than 16,000 acres of parks, sports fields and dedicated open space and is the home of Great Park. For more information, please visit cityofirvine.org.