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A Los Angeles County jury recently convicted former spouses Roman Cerratos, 44, of Hawaii and Maricela Mercado, 45, of Redondo Beach of kidnapping and first-degree murder in the 2019 death of Jeffrey Appel. The verdict in Torrance Superior Court, reached after more than a day of deliberation, concluded a complex case that spanned five years and two countries.
Appel, 32, was taken against his will in Torrance on April 16, 2019. The DA's office claimed Cerratos and Mercado teamed up to kill Appel, who was seeing Mercado at the time. Why they killed him is still a mystery.
The trial showed just how awful the crime really was. In a parking lot at the Torrance Civic Plaza Medical Center, Cerratos allegedly stabbed Appel while he sat in the passenger seat of his white Audi sedan. Witnesses reported seeing what they thought were punching motions and hearing cries for help.
After attacking Appel, Mercado drove to Carson and left the car behind a business. Security cameras caught the pair running away from the car. Appel's body was later discovered by workers, who found him upside down in the front passenger seat. He had been stabbed six times and shot three times.
The day after the murder, Cerratos and Mercado fled to Mexico with Mercado's teenage daughter, prompting an Amber Alert. They were apprehended separately in Mexico over the following months.
Defense attorneys argued there was insufficient evidence to prove kidnapping or that Cerratos and Mercado were the aggressors. They suggested Appel might have been injured elsewhere and questioned the prosecution's interpretation of the evidence.
Prosecutors maintained that while there was no evidence Mercado physically harmed Appel, she was complicit in the crime by not stopping Cerratos or calling for help. The jury ultimately found both defendants guilty of the same charges.
Sentencing for the former married couple convicted in this case is scheduled for August 19. The verdict brings closure to a complex case that has spanned more than five years, involving international pursuit and a thorough investigation by local law enforcement.
