Lake Elsinore gang member admitted emptying his gun into the body of a rival gang member

Lake Elsinore gang member admitted emptying his gun into the body of a rival gang member, an investigator testified Friday.
Arnoldo Estevez Vargas' admission came a decade after the fatal shooting of Harry Estrada, investigator Robert Thompson with the district attorney's office testified.
Thompson was the final witness called during Vargas' two-day preliminary hearing. At its conclusion, Judge F. Paul Dickerson III ruled that there is enough evidence to try Vargas on murder, gun-use and gang charges.
Vargas, 34, fled to Mexico in the wake of the Nov. 8, 1998, shooting on Eisenhower Drive that killed Estrada, 22. Vargas was extradited to California in 2009.
Co-defendants Noah Michael Huckleberry and Anthony Martin Perez pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, according to court records. Another man, David Quinones, also is charged in connection with the shooting, but he has not been captured.
During Friday's hearing, Deputy District Attorney Sam Kaloustian asked Thompson about his November 2009 interview with Vargas, who was assisted in court by a Spanish-speaking interpreter. Thompson said that the interview was conducted in English and that there were no signs that Vargas had trouble understanding him.
Thompson said Vargas told him that on the day of the shooting, he and fellow gang members talked about retaliating against the rival gang, who had attacked one of their own. Thompson testified that Vargas also knew Estrada was moving up within the ranks of his Lake Elsinore-based gang.
Vargas was seen punching and kicking Estrada, who was trying to crawl away, former gang member Joshua McKendry testified last month.
On Friday, the investigator told the judge that Vargas arrived on Eisenhower Driver and saw an unarmed Estrada running in his direction.
"He said he removed the gun from his pocket and shot him," Thompson testified. "He said he shot the whole clip."
"This person was charging toward his direction and he started shooting?" defense attorney Jared Hartman asked.
Thompson said yes, that was the case.

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