PHARR, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The friend accused of assisting two Pharr brothers in the murder of their stepfather has been released from jail on bond.
Juan Eduardo Melendez, 19, was released from jail on Wednesday after posting a reduced bond, according to Hidalgo County Records.
An order of release was filed on Aug. 8 and signed by 93rd District Court Judge Fernando G. Mancias, records show.
In July, a motion was set for a reasonable bond. Melendez was originally facing a bond total of $500,000. According to the order of release, Melendez was released after paying a bond amount of $110,000.
Melendez was arrested on charges of capital murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, engaging in criminal activity and possession of marijuana, records show.
Christian Trevino and Alejandro Trevino were charged in connection to the murder of their stepfather, Gabriel Quintanilla, after his body was discovered on Jan. 20 in a field in McAllen. Melendez was charged in connection to the murder.
According to police, a younger relative had accused Quintanilla of sexual assault. When Alejandro and Christian heard of this, they confronted Quintanilla which led to a physical fight.
They were later joined by Melendez, a friend of theirs who also began assaulting Quintanilla, police said.
Christian Trevino and Melendez then dropped off Alejandro at his residence and found Quintanilla walking along a road severely injured. They placed him in the bed of their truck and took him to the field where he was later found dead.
At a press conference on Jan. 25, Pharr police said that Quintanilla had a separate warrant for continuous sexual assault of a child dating back to 2019.
A petition titled “Justice for Alejandro, Christian, and Juan” which asks that the teens involved in the murder be released, has received over 677,000 signatures as of Thursday.