Pair Charged With Killings Of RPV Couple

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA — Two suspects already in custody for allegedly committing robberies along Angeles Crest Highway in the same general area where a man was fatally shot last summer were charged Tuesday with the killings of two people found just days later inside a parked car in Rancho Palos Verdes.

Wendy Sarai Cerritos, 20, and Rossel Jose Hernandez, 22, both of Los Angeles, were both charged with two counts of murder stemming from the July 24, 2023, deaths of Jorge Ramos, 36, and TaylorRaven Whittaker, 26, who were shot inside a parked Subaru sedan in the 7000 block of Palos Verdes Drive, according to court records.

See Related: Couple Shot To Death In Rancho Palos Verdes Identified

Cerritos was also charged with two counts of attempted second-degree robbery, while Hernandez was charged with one count of attempted second-degree robbery.

The charges against both defendants include various firearm allegations. They appeared in court Tuesday, but their arraignment was postponed until Feb. 26.

The killings of Ramos and Whittaker occurred just two days after 32-year-old Jesse Munoz of Los Angeles was fatally shot during what Pasadena police called a robbery along Angeles Crest Highway. The investigation into Munoz's killing quickly led to the arrests of multiple suspects who police said were part of a group that committed robberies targeting people who were "distracted" while they were either near or parked at scenic turnouts. Police at the time said the Pasadena and Rancho Palos Verdes killings appeared to be related, but no direct connection was made at the time.

Days after the arrests were announced, Cerritos and Hernandez were charged in connection with robberies that had occurred along Angeles Crest Highway the week before Munoz's death. In that case, Cerritos was charged with four counts of robbery with a handgun, and Hernandez was charged with two counts. A third suspect, 24-year-old Luis Ventura, was charged with robbing
Munoz and a female passenger who was with him when he died.

In September, Ventura and two other men — Marco Antonio Hernandez, 18, and Abraham Ernesto Alvarenga Cortez, 21 — were charged with Munoz's killing. That case is still pending.

Although Cerritos and Rossel Hernandez were not charged with Munoz's killing, the charges filed against them Tuesday stemming from the Rancho Palos Verdes deaths were consolidated with the pending case against Ventura, Marco Hernandez and Cortez.

According to jail records, Rossel Hernandez was being held in lieu of $150,000 bail in connection with the original robbery charges, while Cerritos was being held on $300,000 bail. It was unclear if their bail was increased Tuesday in response to the filing of the murder charges.

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