2/3/2022 – 10:02 a.m.
On July 1, 2020, Patricia Jocelyn Alatorre, 13, snuck out of her house in Bakersfield, California, to meet up with a man she met on the internet. Armando Cruz, 24, admitted to strangulating her and desecrating her body.
In the week leading to her murder, Patricia Alatorre had met Armando Cruz and was communicating with him on Instagram.
Cruz had convinced Patricia to exchange sexually explicit photographs. Patricia and Cruz had met up before they had met the night of her murder.
According to police, the first time they met Cruz forced Patricia to perform oral sex on him. Court documents state that Cruz offered to pay Patricia for sexual acts and threatened to expose the explicit photos she shared with him if she did not meet him.
On July 1, 2020, Patricia’s mom had seen her before she went to sleep. When she went to wake her up in the morning, she found pillows and pajamas in the shape of a person underneath the blanket.
Her family had reported her as a runaway, even though she did not have a history of leaving the house in this manner. Her mom tried calling Patricia’s phone it kept going to voicemail; when they tried to locate her phone, the signal had cut off somewhere around Panama Lane and Highway 99.
During their investigation, police were able to obtain the IP address associated with the social media account Cruz was using.
Police were able to make a connection between Cruz and the white pickup that Patricia was seen getting into, which was caught on a surveillance video. Cruz was arrested on July 5, 2020.
Cruz told police how he drove away with Patricia, even though she was yelling and screaming that she did not want to go with him. At some point, Cruz raped Patricia, who was yelling for him to stop.
Cruz held his hand over her mouth while sexually assaulting her for several minutes, causing her death. He would bind her arms and mouth in duct tape and sexually assault her remains. He then set her body on fire using lighter fluid.
Patricia’s remains were found wrapped in a red sleeping bag near Aviation Boulevard.
Cruz has been charged with 1st degree murder, rape by force, oral copulation by force victim under 14 years of age, oral copulation with child when defendant is 10 years older, Lewd and lascivious acts with child under 14 with force, lewd or lascivious acts with child under 14, aggravated sexual assault of a minor by force, aggravated sexual assault of a minor oral copulation by force, contact with minor with intent to commit sexual act, contacting minor to commit sexual act, possess obscene matter: minor in sexual acts.
Cruz has plead not guilty and is currently awaiting trial. Cruz’s next court date is March 3, 2022.
If convicted Cruz faces the death penalty.
