Crime & Safety

San Juan Capistrano Murder Trial Set to Begin Monday

Robert Eugene Vasquez is accused of nearly decapitating one San Juan resident and almost killing another.

One and a half years after a nearly decapitated body was discovered in a San Juan Capistrano mobile home park, a suspect heads to court.

Opening statements in the trial against Robert Eugene Vasquez of San Juan Capistrano are scheduled to begin Monday, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s office. He has been charged with one count of murder with a special circumstance for lying in wait.

Before deputies were able to catch up to Vasquez, wanted in the Dec. 1, 2011 death of Bobby Ray Rainwater of San Juan Capistrano, Vasquez is also accused of nearly killing another San Juan Capistrano resident, Lance Lyons, two days later.

Find out what's happening in San Juan Capistranowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

If convicted, Vasquez faces sentencing enhancements for the personal use of a deadly weapon and causing great bodily injury. He could be sentenced to life in state prison without the possibility of parole, according to the DA.

Authorities believe that in the predawn hours of Dec. 1, 2011, Vasquez lay in wait behind some bushes, waiting for Rainwater, a registered sex offender, to emerge from the mobile home he shared with his parents. According to the DA, it was Rainwater’s past that drove Vasquez to allegedly commit the crime.

Find out what's happening in San Juan Capistranowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Vasquez first punched Rainwater in the back of the head, then stabbed him multiple times, “nearly decapitating him,” according to a district attorney press release issued when Vasquez was first charged. He then fled the scene.

Then, on Dec. 3, Vasquez was staying at an acquaintance’s house when he allegedly picked up a metal object and struck the face of Lyons as he slept. Deputies believe Vasquez was about to inflict a second, fatal blow, when one of Lyons’ brothers intervened.

Although Vasquez fled that scene as well, deputies later that day caught up to him and tied him to the Rainwater case.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.