A man was arrested in connection to the cold case murder of a 15-year-old boy in Riverside County.
The suspect was identified as Vincent Gonzales, 37, of Lake Elsinore, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.
On May 5, 2007, deputies at the Moreno Valley station responded to reports of shots fired at a dirt field on the 23000 block of Sunnymead Boulevard in Moreno Valley.
Arriving deputies found Clayvaughn Mallet, 15, suffering from gunshot wounds at the scene. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. The shooter had fled the scene.
Detectives began investigating the case, but after several years of no solid leads, the case went cold.
In 2024, Riverside County investigators were reviewing the case when they identified new evidence and decided to reopen the case.
Nearly 18 years after the boy’s murder, detectives identified Gonzales as the primary suspect.
On March 28, Gonzales was arrested in Lake Elsinore and booked into the Cois Byrd Detention Center for murder.
No further details, including the motive or how the suspect and victim were known to each other, were released as the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information on the case is encouraged to call Investigator Dan Brown at 951-955-2777.
