Arrest made in slaying of Redondo Beach mother, daughter

Detectives wrapped up the crime scene late Tuesday evening.
Detectives wrap up the Bergman crime scene. Photo
Redondo Beach double homicide

Another quiet Redondo Beach neighborhood was cordoned by police and surrounded by yellow tape after the second brutal murder in a week shook the city. A suspect was apprehended in Mexico early Wednesday morning.

Courtney Bergman, 19, and her mother Vicki Bergman, 59, were found dead early Tuesday morning in their 1903 Rockefeller Lane home by a female coworker of Vicki’s, who went inside to find their bodies lying on the floor.
Jonathan Chacon was arrested in Mexico and booked at RBPD under suspect of homicide.

Jonathan Chacon was arrested in Mexico and booked at RBPD under suspect of homicide.

The coworker called police, who arrived at 10:08 a.m. and determined the two had been victims of foul play. Sources within the department said the suspect used a knife, and described the slaying as “pretty gruesome.” Police confirmed that the deaths occurred sometime overnight.

A neighbor who had walked her dog past the house earlier in the morning reported seeing dried blood on the sidewalk, but didn’t think anything of it at the time. After blocking off the scene, detectives kept reporters and neighbors at a distance while they labeled, studied and photographed evidence on the ground as far as three houses away.

Late Tuesday afternoon Redondo Beach police released the name and description of Courtney’s boyfriend, Jonathan Chacon, a 23-year-old Redondo man with a tattoo of the grim reaper on his right arm and the word “death” tattooed on his left forearm. Police warned the public Chacon could be armed and dangerous.

They also released the description of his car, a 1996 black Ford Mustang with a damaged bumper and a convertible top. Tips flooded into the Redondo Beach Police Department. An off-duty officer noticed the car heading north on I-5 in Orange County, and the chase was on.

Detectives wrapped up the crime scene late Tuesday evening.

Detectives wrapped up the crime scene late Tuesday evening.

Through tips from the public, Redondo Beach officers and detectives, along with Homeland Security Investigations, Customs and Border Protection, and Mexican authorities located Chacon at a Hotel in Rosarito Beach, Baja California, Mexico early Wednesday morning.

“One of the main reasons [we were] able to solve this case so quickly was due to public’s cooperation and tips we received,” said RBPD Captain Jeff Hink. “Had the message not gotten out by media, none of it would be possible.”

Chacon was transported back to the United States and after a brief stop at a hospital to treat cuts on his hand was brought to the Redondo Beach Police Department. He was booked and held on suspicion of slaying the two.

The capture and extradition of Chacon from Mexico was speeded along by Redondo’s sister city relationship with Rosarito and Ensenada, Mexico. “We [the city] have an extremely good relationship with them,” said Redondo Beach Councilman Steve Aspel. “[The police] avoided a lot of the red tape because of that.”

The suspect’s vehicle was found in Mission Viejo, California, and authorities were trying to determine how Chacon got as far south as Mexico without his car. Police said they were investigating the possibility that Chacon had accomplices.

The slayings of three people in one week rattled neighbors and other residents, in a town that saw only three homicides from 2002 to 2011.

“It’s sad, especially considering this is the second murder [in a week],” said a neighbor.

During the investigation, neighbors voiced their concern but police assured them that the slaying was an isolated incident and was unrelated to the death of Margaret Goldberg a little less than a week earlier.

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