Erick Robles Mendoza and Julio Cesar Chavez arrested for rape, murder

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Erick Robles Mendoza and Julio Cesar Chavez arrested for rape, murder

Erick Robles Mendoza

Raleigh, N.C. — A suspect in a 2008 Raleigh homicide and another man caught during a foot chase Friday were charged in a Cary rape, Raleigh Police spokesman Jim Sughrue said.

Officers arrested Erick Robles Mendoza, 29, and Julio Cesar Chavez, 18, after a foot pursuit in a wooded area off of South Wilmington Street Saturday.

Mendoza was charged with murder in the June 14, 2008, shooting death of 38-year-old Miguel Najara Martinez along Peyton Street. Chavez was charged with possession of a stolen firearm.

The two
men were also being held on charges of first-degree rape and kidnapping from crimes that occurred in Cary, Sughrue said.
Police charged an 18-year-old woman with helping hide Mendoza since Martinez' shooting death. Luz Elena Diaz-Flores faces charges of harboring a fugitive.

Police obtained arrest warrants for murder against Mendoza days after Martinez' death, but he remained at large for over a year. Investigators suspect he went to Mexico.

Mendoza was featured on "N.C. Wanted," which airs on WRAL's sister station Fox50, and police said a "credible tip" about Mendoza's whereabouts came through "NC Wanted's" hotline and helped them locate him in Raleigh. Homicide detectives, the Technical Assistance Response Unit and Fugitive Task Force helped track him down, Sughrue said.

Sughrue said the investigation into the suspects' activities was ongoing.

Anyone with information that might assist the continuing investigation should call the Raleigh Police Department’s Dete
ctive Division at 919-996-3555 or Raleigh Crime Stoppers at 919-834-HELP. Crime Stoppers pays cash rewards for anonymous tips that help solve crimes.