Pastor Arrested For Hiring Hitman To Kill Daughter’s Boyfriend

A pastor of a church in Victorville, California, has been arrested for allegedly hiring hitmen to kill the man dating his daughter.

The Riverside Police Department said the clergyman, identified as Samuel Pasillas, 47, paid $40,000 to have his daughter’s suitor killed.

It was learnt that Pasillas provided information about the boyfriend to the men he paid, including the man’s location on the night he was shot in October 2023.

The victim was shot in Riverside in a drive-by on Oct. 21, 2023.

He was struck by several bullets but survived after driving himself to a nearby hospital.

Investigators say they later discovered that the hitmen had been hired by Pasillas, who disapproved of the man’s relationship with his daughter.

The men allegedly conducted surveillance on the victim for weeks leading up to the shooting, and Pasillas also allegedly provided them details on their target’s whereabouts.

“He actually provided information to these suspects that he hired. He paid them almost $40,000,” said Riverside Police Officer Ryan Railsback.

The two men then drove up to the victim, who was in his car on Grove Community Drive in Riverside, and opened fire, wounding him.

Last week, Riverside police arrested Pasillas and one of the alleged hitmen, Juan Manuel Cebreros, 55, of Long Beach.

Detectives are seeking another man, Jesus Abel Felix Garcia, but his whereabouts are currently unknown.

Pasillas and Cebreros pleaded not guilty during a joint arraignment on Monday, March 18, at the Riverside Hall of Justice and are slated to appear for a felony settlement conference on March 26.

Each man is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside.