By The Daily Caller (U.S.) | Created at 2026-08-13 17:01:48 | Updated at 2026-08-13 18:13:46
2 hours ago
An illegal alien was charged with fatally stabbing a man a day after a California judge released him, records say.
The suspect, 36-year-old Marcos Iriarte-Valdez, had allegedly attacked and killed 68-year-old Todd Stewart during a residential burglary on August 6, according to a statement from Contra Costa County. (RELATED: ICE Plans To Spend Up To $20 Million Dollars On Taser Gloves)
In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said that Iriarte-Valdez is a Venezuelan illegal alien and now resides in “sanctuary California.”
DHS said that Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom “must NOT RELEASE this murderer from jail and turn him over to us so we can REMOVE him from our nation.”
The DHS statement was also accompanied by footage taken by security cameras that shows what appears to be Iriarte-Valdez getting out of an SUV while wearing a tactical vest and another video showing the same man wrestling Stewart over a knife outside of his home in broad daylight.
This Venezuelan illegal alien STABBED A FATHER TO DEATH in sanctuary California.@CAgovernor must NOT RELEASE this murderer from jail and turn him over to us so we can REMOVE him from our nation. https://t.co/N5GhEN3S5q pic.twitter.com/NeTiGSvCJc
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) August 11, 2026Court records showed that Iriarte-Valdez had been released the day before the stabbing on pretrial release after having been arrested and charged with two counts of residential burglary in April.
Iriarte-Valdez has now received an additional felony charge of murder, with enhancements for killing during a burglary, using a knife and allegedly committing the crime while out on conditional release, court records show.
The suspect’s bail is now set at over $1 million, according to arrest records, and he has denied all charges, according to a county statement.
Iriarte-Valdez will also receive the same judicial officer, David E. Goldstein, that he had when he was released before the stabbing, court records showed.
Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton told ABC7 Eyewitness News that her office will “pursue this case with diligence and integrity to hold Iriarte-Valdez fully accountable under the law for this devastating act of violence.”
DHS went further, telling ABC7 that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had placed a detainer on a Venezuelan national, who they said also has citizenship in Spain.
