Three 18-year-olds arrested in Yuma murder of Valentin Morales

Three 18-year-olds are now in custody after a Yuma shooting that killed Valentin Morales, bringing the case from a west-side street corner to the Maricopa County Jail in less than a week.

Yuma police said the shooting happened around 7:45 p.m. on April 26 near S. 15th Avenue and W. Fifth Street. Officers found Morales, 18, unresponsive on the ground and began life-saving measures before he was taken to Onvida Health, where he later died.

Investigators said a white four-door sedan pulled up, fired multiple rounds and drove away. Witnesses told police there were at least three suspects in the vehicle, and described them as Black or Hispanic. That account has become a key part of the case as detectives work to reconstruct who was inside the car, who fired the shots and whether additional suspects were involved.

On May 2, Yuma police, with help from the Tempe Police Department and Glendale Police Department, arrested Julius Avery Johnson, Antwan De'shawn Yancey and Moises Murillo in Avondale. All three are 18 and were booked into the Maricopa County Jail on multiple felony charges, including first-degree murder.

The murder charge moves the case into a more serious phase of the court process, with prosecutors expected to build the case around the shooting sequence, witness statements and any physical evidence recovered during the investigation. Police have said the case remains active, and they are still asking anyone with information to come forward.

For Yuma residents, the arrest marks an important step, but not the end of the case. The questions now are whether investigators believe everyone connected to the shooting has been identified and what evidence led them to the three arrests in Avondale, more than 180 miles from where Morales was shot.

Morales’ family has also turned to the community for help. A GoFundMe set up in his name had a $5,500 goal and had raised nearly $3,160 by the time of the report, underscoring the financial strain that follows a violent death as well as the criminal case itself.

Anyone with information can contact the Yuma Police Department at (928) 783-4421 or leave an anonymous tip with 78-Crime at (928) 782-7463. The investigation continues as detectives work to account for every person tied to the sedan and the shooting on Fifth Street.