MURRIETA – (INT) – The death penalty will be at stake as David Contreras stands trial for killing three people at random.

The slayings occurred over a 5-week period as the victims innocently walked near their homes in the Perris-Nuevo area. Prosecutors said the stabbings occurred within 4-miles of Contreras’ home and that he did not know his victims.

Jose Apreza was found dead in a field where he’d been walking his dog. Maria Gonzalez and her 25-year-old daughter were attacked and left for dead as they walked along Central Avenue in Nuevo in February 2013. Contreras was arrested 6-months later.

Contreras’ trial is expected to last about a month.

Story Date: February 24, 2017