Man to face murder charges in 2013 killing of Tahoe gas station attendant
Special to the Sierra Sun
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — A man will face murder charges for the 2013 killing of a gas station attendant at Lake Tahoe.
Authorities said late last week that the El Dorado County Grand Jury handed down an indictment on Sept. 3 for Sean Donohue who allegedly walked into the US Gasoline Station on Lake Tahoe Blvd., fired a single shot and killed store clerk 27-year-old Manpreet Singh.
At the time of the Aug. 6 murder, extensive investigation resulted in no arrests and officials say the case went “cold.”
The District Attorney’s Office Cold Case Division in July 2017 posted a video about the homicide in hopes that new leads would be generated.
Just over 2 years later in August 2019, a witness watched the video and told investigators that Sean Donohue, 35, was responsible for the murder, the Tribune previously reported.
Video surveillance captured that night showed the suspect dressed in black walking from Pamira Ave., behind the business. The gunman then entered the gas station, appeared to briefly say something to Singh, then fatally shot him. There were no witnesses and nothing was taken from the store.
Donohoe was found in Las Vegas.
The Cold Case Task Force, which is a collaboration between the DA’s office, sheriff’s office, South Lake Tahoe Police Department, Department of Justice, Bureau of Forensic Science and Federal Bureau of Investigation, traveled to interview the involved parties.
The DOJ and BFS compared evidence collected from the investigation to Donohoe’s DNA and found it matched.
On Tuesday, May 12, with the help of the FBI and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Donohoe was arrested for the murder of Singh.
Donohoe was held in Las Vegas before being extradited to California.
He is being charged with murder with use of a firearm. He was arraigned on Sept. 4.
“I’m most proud of my guys bringing closure to the Singh family,” said SLTPD Detective Lt. Shannon Laney to the Tribune shortly after the arrest. “The residents may forget but the families never do.”
The Grand Jury also returned indictments for three suspects in the killing of Deputy Brian Ishmael on Oct. 23, 2019.
Juan Carlos Vasquez-Orozco was charged with first degree murder, assault with a firearm causing great bodily injury and assault with a firearm. Co-defendants Christoipher Ross is charged with second degree murder of a peace officer and Ramiro Morales for accessory to murder.
All three suspects were arraigned on Sept. 16.
Bill Rozak is the Editor with the Tahoe Daily Tribune, a sister publication to the Sierra Sun. He can be reached at brozak@tahoedailytribune.com.
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