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-Editorial
A jury has found Rodrigo Flores Gomez guilty of first-degree murder with willful premeditation and deliberation in the 2024 killing of his wife, Sandy Fabela. The verdict was delivered on July 25, 2025, following a trial prosecuted by the Imperial County District Attorney’s Office.
According to court records, Fabela obtained a Domestic Violence Restraining Order (DVRO) against Flores Gomez on February 14, 2024. Declarations submitted by the victim and the couple’s 16-year-old daughter detailed 16 years of psychological, physical, and emotional abuse. The daughter warned in her statement that she feared her father would eventually kill her mother. Although the restraining order prohibited Flores Gomez from approaching the victim and their three children, it was never served.
Two months later, on April 12, 2024, Brawley Police arrested Flores Gomez for possession of methamphetamine and felony resisting an officer after he was seen on the roof of Fabela’s residence. He was released from custody.
One week later, on April 19, Fabela confronted him about his drug use around the children and reminded him that the restraining order granted her custody. He responded by threatening to beat her.
The following evening, April 20, the murder occurred. After a family dinner, the couple’s 16-year-old daughter went to sleep in a detached backyard studio. At some point later that night, while their infant and 7-year-old son were asleep, Flores Gomez violently assaulted and strangled Fabela inside the home, causing fatal injuries. He then transported her body to her car and left it parked at Meserve Park in Brawley.
He returned home and told his daughter the victim was in the hospital and asked for help locating her phone. After retrieving it, he deleted the home’s security footage. When the daughter questioned him, asking if he had killed her mother, Flores Gomez admitted to the crime. She immediately called 911.
Responding officers located Fabela’s body in the car. A forensic pathologist testified that her injuries were too severe for any life-saving intervention.
Flores Gomez was arrested and charged with murder under Penal Code §187 and child abuse under Penal Code §273a(b). His murder and prior drug cases were consolidated for trial.
While in custody, Flores Gomez attempted to escape from the Imperial County jail by climbing onto the roof via a basketball hoop. His escape was foiled when his clothing became caught in barbed wire. He later pleaded no contest to the escape attempt and was charged accordingly.
Sentencing for both the murder and the escape attempt is scheduled for August 22, 2025, before Judge Christopher Plourd in Department 7 at the El Centro Courthouse.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Kia Harris of the Special Victims Unit.