San Diego man who helped encase elderly victim’s body in cement gets 9-year prison term

Man who helped put body in cement gets 9-year term

SAN DIEGO — A man who helped encase the body of an 80-year-old Southern California man in cement and lived off the victim’s savings and credit cards was sentenced Thursday to nine years in state prison.

Arlo Elizarraraz, 20, pleaded guilty in September to 55 felony counts, including being an accessory after a murder, theft from an elder and possession of stolen property.

His co-defendant, Thomas Jeffrey Brooks, 41, is charged with killing Edward Andrews, of Hemet, after befriending him.

Prosecutors said Elizarraraz helped Brooks encase Andrews’ body in a concrete orb that was the centerpiece of a rock garden in Brooks’ landlord’s backyard.

Elizarraraz bought the concrete, chicken wire and a shovel at Home Depot. Prosecutors said he then helped Brooks mix the concrete, move the body and hide it in concrete, wrapped in duct tape, a blanket and a plastic tarp.

Neighbors later learned of Brooks’ arrest on financial fraud charges, became suspicious and partially broke open the orb, exposing a human foot, Deputy District Attorney Dino Paraskevopoulos said.

Over eight months, Brooks withdrew about $24,000 from the victim’s accounts and made $108,000 in phony check deposits, prosecutors said. Elizarraraz and Brooks drained Andrews’ bank account of $3,591 and bought merchandise from retail stores.

“This is simply greed,” he said. “The defendant wanted one thing: easy money, and he got it.”

Brooks and Andrews became pen pals while Brooks was serving time in federal prison in Victorville. Brooks met the victim at his home in Hemet after he was released from prison and the two developed a romantic relationship, the prosecutor said.

Defense attorney Steve Wadler said Elizarraraz met Brooks through a Craigslist.org ad to which Brooks responded. Elizarraraz became involved in Brooks’ criminal lifestyle and realized it was wrong, but couldn’t stop his behavior, Wadler told the judge.

Andrews was last seen at his trailer home on May 30, 2008, and the next day fraudulent activity began appearing in his bank accounts and credit cards, Paraskevopoulos said.

A few days later, his neighbor got a letter, supposedly from Andrews, which said he was on a trip with Brooks and the two were in love, Paraskevopoulos said. A deputy medical examiner testified that Andrews died of asphyxiation.

Judge David Danielsen said it was one of the most unusual cases he’s ever seen.

Elizarraraz came face-to-face with “reprehensible human conduct” and continued to take part in it, Danielsen said.

Brooks is scheduled to be arraigned in Superior Court on March 22.