Following a 26-day trial, Juan Francisco Tapia Ibarra, 25, was convicted of murdering Zobeya “Zoe” Esquerra in 2022, the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office has announced.
Esquerra, 22, was fatally shot outside an O’Reilly Auto Parts store on Geer Road in Turlock where her boyfriend worked. Ibarra stalked Esquerra for months, vandalized her car and home in the process. He was arrested for doing so in October 2022.
Ibarra and Esquerra became friends in 2021. She told him from the beginning that she wasn’t interested in a romantic relationship, according to previous Bee reporting. However, he became obsessed with her that summer.
“She said that he told her that he loved her and she said she didn’t want that and it made her feel uncomfortable,” court documents read.
Ibarra’s actions became aggressive when he learned Esquerra had a boyfriend — showing up to her house in the middle of the night, knocking on windows and doors. After he learned Esquerra and her boyfriend moved in together, his actions escalated. He keyed her car, smashed its windows and threw acid on it, according to a statement released by the DA’s Office.
He eventually set her car on fire by placing a lighted flare in it. She replaced the car and Ibarra set the new car on fire the same way. At the time, Esquerra and her family didn’t know the damage was done by Ibarra.
He started giving her money, which she didn’t ask for, to pay for vehicle repairs. “It sounds like he may have been vandalizing her car so that he could ‘save her’ and pay for the repairs,” a Livingston police officer wrote in a report.
Esquerra’s family eventually confronted Ibarra about the whole situation, after they tailed him while he was following Esquerra. They called the police and he was arrested for stalking, vandalism and two counts of arson of property. A restraining order was placed on him, but it expired before Esquerra was killed.
Ibarra posted his $50,000 bail for his previous charges but continued to follow Esquerra around town. As she arrived at the O’ Reilly Auto Parts store to pick up her boyfriend, Ibarra was parked far away and watched her through binoculars.
He approached and shot her twice. When she fell on the pavement of the parking lot, he shot her twice again. He then fired several shots at her boyfriend and another store employee. They were not injured. Esquerra was pronounced dead at the scene.
After he shot Esquerra, Ibarra fled the scene. A Turlock Police Officer attempted to pull Ibarra over, but he continued to flee. Ibarra was chased for about two miles before he crashed into the fence of a home. He was found hiding in a bush near the crash. Investigators found what they believed was the murder weapon.
In a jury trial that ended last week, Ibarra was found guilty of first-degree murder while lying in wait, assault with a firearm, attempted murder, two counts of arson, robbery, stalking and recklessly evading a police officer. While investigating the murder, detectives connected Ibarra to an armed robbery where he held two employees at gunpoint and demanded money, reads the DA’s release.
Ibarra faces life in prison and scheduled to be sentenced July 3, when victim impact statements — typically from from the victim’s family and friends — will be read.
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