Calif. Man Allegedly Used 'Shards of Glass' to Kill Girlfriend in Hotel Room, Prosecutors Say

A man was charged with murdering his girlfriend in Ventura County, Calif., according to a Ventura County District Attorney’s Office news release on Wednesday, Jan. 15.

On Monday, Jan. 6, at 10:45 p.m., Uriel Gamboa, 31, called authorities and told them he killed his girlfriend Aliya Pitts, 24, inside their room at the Palm Garden Hotel in Thousand Oaks, Calif., per the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO). The VCSO deputies arrived at the scene just before 11:00 p.m. and discovered Pitts’s body in the room. 

Pitt’s cause of death was revealed as sharp and blunt force injuries with probable strangulation, according to the Ventura County Medical Examiner, The Ventura County Star reported. Prosecutors allege in their complaint that Pitt was killed by a “broken bottle/shards of glass,” per the County Star.

“Gamboa sustained self-inflicted injuries,” per the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office’s latest press release. He allegedly told authorities he was “feeling suicidal,” per the VCSO new release. 

Once in police custody, Gamboa was taken to a local hospital. He was then discharged on Friday, Jan. 10, and then was arrested for murder. On Tuesday, Jan. 14, Gamboa was also charged with use of a deadly weapon, crime being committed with great bodily injury and crime involving great violence.

Gamboa remains in custody without bail, and an arraignment is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 10, at Ventura County Superior Court. 

The motive of the murder is under investigation. “The investigation shows this to be an isolated incident, with no outstanding threat to the public,” per VCSO news release.

Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Christopher Vorzimer at 805-384-4731 or Detective Nicole Grover at 805-384-4722.

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