Investigators say automated license plate readers helped officers locate Adrian Lujan in Merced County hours after he fled San Juan Bautista.
SAN JUAN BAUTISTA, Calif. — A network of license plate cameras helped authorities track a murder suspect across county lines after a 2-year-old boy was found unconscious and his mother reported fighting off a strangulation attempt inside their apartment, officials said.
The search for Adrian Joseph Lujan began with limited but urgent information: a Ford Fusion had left a home at 107 The Alameda, a toddler was not breathing and a woman said her boyfriend had attacked her. Investigators used automated cameras to trace the vehicle toward Merced County, where officers pursued and arrested Lujan. The 33-year-old later pleaded not guilty to five felony charges and remains jailed without bail.
San Benito County deputies were dispatched at 12:14 a.m. June 7 after a caller reported a baby who was not breathing. Emergency workers entered the apartment and found the 2-year-old boy unconscious. Deputies and medics performed CPR before transporting him to Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Evidence on the child indicated strangulation, according to the sheriff’s office. At the same time, investigators learned that Lujan had left in a Ford Fusion after allegedly attacking his 34-year-old girlfriend. With a suspected homicide, a surviving assault victim and another young child still at the scene, authorities treated the departing vehicle as the key to finding him. The sheriff’s office shared information with other agencies as the search expanded beyond San Benito County.
Automated license plate readers supplied the next major lead. The systems capture images of passing vehicles and record details such as license plate numbers, locations and times. Officials said Flock cameras helped trace Lujan into Merced County, although they have not disclosed which cameras detected the Ford, how many times it was recorded or the route it followed. The technology did not make the arrest by itself. It gave officers a geographic trail that could be combined with radio communication, vehicle descriptions and patrol work. Merced County law enforcement personnel found Lujan, pursued him and arrested him after a physical encounter, according to the sheriff’s office. Officials have not identified the specific arresting agency or the place where the pursuit ended.
The camera-assisted search connected two different regions of Central California during the first hours of the investigation. San Juan Bautista sits west of Hollister in San Benito County, while Merced County lies east across the agricultural interior of the state. A direct trip can cover many miles and pass through several law enforcement jurisdictions. That distance created a risk that the suspect could abandon the Ford, change direction or disappear before officers reached him. Sheriff Eric Taylor credited the participating agencies, including the California Highway Patrol, Merced County law enforcement partners and the San Benito County District Attorney’s Office. Authorities have not said whether a formal pursuit began immediately after a camera alert or whether officers first watched the vehicle before attempting a stop.
The alleged crimes that triggered the manhunt unfolded inside the apartment while the woman and two children were home. Investigators said the woman had been sleeping when she awoke to Lujan trying to strangle her. A 4-year-old child was present during the encounter. The woman fought back, and Lujan left the apartment. She then searched for her 2-year-old son, who was not in his bed. She found him on a couch outside her bedroom with a bluish complexion and no apparent signs of consciousness. The woman’s call brought deputies and medics to the home. Officials have not released the name of the boy or his mother, and they have not disclosed whether the surviving woman or the older child received continuing medical or protective services.
Taylor said investigators believe Lujan had planned to kill his entire family before the woman interrupted him. The sheriff said that belief was based on a statement attributed to Lujan, but the agency has not released the statement itself. Authorities also said Lujan confessed to killing his son after he was returned to San Benito County. Before he was booked, he underwent a physical and mental evaluation at Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital. Officials have not explained what led to that evaluation, whether it produced any diagnosis or whether it was routine because of the physical encounter during the arrest. Medical information may remain private unless attorneys later argue that it is relevant to Lujan’s mental state or the admissibility of his alleged statements.
The investigation now depends on more than the electronic trail that helped locate Lujan. Detectives must establish what happened inside the apartment, when the toddler was attacked and whether the evidence supports premeditation. The sheriff’s office said it had not established a motive. It also has not released an autopsy report, a complete description of injuries or the results of laboratory testing. Records from the plate readers may be used to establish Lujan’s movements after the incident, but they cannot independently prove what happened before he entered the Ford. Prosecutors are expected to rely on a combination of physical evidence, the mother’s account, medical findings, digital records and statements allegedly made by Lujan.
Prosecutors filed five felony charges following the arrest. The complaint includes murder, attempted murder, assault on a child causing death, inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant and spousal abuse causing injury. The murder and child assault charges concern the 2-year-old’s death. The attempted murder and domestic violence allegations relate to the reported strangulation of the woman. Lujan appeared in San Benito County Superior Court on June 10 and pleaded not guilty. He is being held without bail. The charges are accusations, and the government must prove them in court. No jury has heard evidence, and the defense has not issued a detailed public account disputing or explaining the allegations.
The reported presence of the 4-year-old adds another part to the case. Taylor initially said child endangerment charges could be considered because the child witnessed or was exposed to the attack. A separately labeled child endangerment count was not among the five felonies later reported in court records. Prosecutors may still describe the child’s presence when presenting the attempted murder and domestic violence allegations. Authorities have not identified the older child’s parents or current guardian. They also have not said whether investigators interviewed the child. Interviews involving young witnesses often require specialists and carefully controlled procedures, particularly when the child may have experienced trauma.
License plate reader systems have become increasingly common tools for police agencies searching for stolen cars, missing people and wanted suspects. In this case, the sheriff’s office identified the cameras as a decisive part of locating the Ford. The agency has not released details about its policies for retaining or sharing the camera data. Those broader policy questions are separate from the criminal allegations but may shape how attorneys authenticate the records if prosecutors introduce them as evidence. Investigators would need to show that the plate information accurately corresponded to the Ford connected to Lujan and that timestamps and locations were preserved reliably.
Following Lujan’s arrest, investigators transported him back to San Benito County. The sheriff’s office said detectives obtained a confession to the child’s murder. No publicly available filing describes the exact words attributed to him. The defense could seek access to body-camera recordings, interview-room video, medical records and communications among the agencies involved in the search. Attorneys also may examine whether Lujan was advised of his rights before questioning and whether his medical condition affected the interview. A judge, rather than the sheriff’s office, would resolve any legal dispute over whether the alleged confession can be presented at trial.
The case’s impact extended beyond the technology and the pursuit. San Juan Bautista has a population of slightly more than 2,000 and is known for its historic mission and quiet downtown. News that a toddler had died inside a local apartment prompted public mourning. The County Board of Supervisors planned a June 9 moment of silence for the child and his surviving family. “We mourn the loss of this peaceful child and will pursue justice for him and his family,” the sheriff’s office said. The boy’s identity has remained private, leaving the public account focused on the law enforcement timeline rather than details of his life.
Lujan is scheduled to return to court July 23 for a proceeding expected to set a preliminary hearing date. At the preliminary hearing, prosecutors can begin showing how the emergency call, medical findings, camera records, arrest and alleged confession fit together. The judge will decide whether sufficient probable cause supports the charges. Prosecutors have not announced when the child’s final autopsy findings will become available, and no trial date has been set. The exact motive, the full path of the Ford and the sequence of events inside the apartment remain under investigation.
Lujan remains in the San Benito County Jail without bail. His next reported court date is July 23, when the case is expected to move closer to its first extended public examination of the evidence.
Author note: Last updated July 11, 2026.