MMA star Cain Velasquez was back in court Monday for a preliminary hearing on attempted murder charges. The hearing is critical because it will determine if there is enough evidence to send the case to trial. Damian Trujillo reports.
Former mixed martial arts champion Cain Velasquez was back in court Monday morning for a preliminary hearing.
The hearing was supposed to take place Oct. 17, but it was pushed back due to new evidence.
Back in August, Velasquez pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and other charges.
Investigators say he shot into a pickup truck that was carrying a man accused of sexually assaulting one of his young relatives. That man was unharmed, but another man riding in the truck was struck by the gunfire.
NBC Bay Area learned a Morgan Hill police sergeant, Sergio Pires, testified during Monday's hearing that he found at least five bullet holes on the side of the victim's truck.
Pires was the first officer on scene when witnesses began reporting that a driver of one truck was shooting at another truck during a high speed chase on Monterey Highway.
He said in addition to bullet impact dents on the truck, he also found a shattered window. Pires also found a semi-automatic handgun in Velasquez's central console, after, he said, Velasquez told officers it was there.
The sergeant said once he pulled over, Velasquez raised his hands and voluntarily got on the ground. That was the first time officers knew the suspect was a mixed martial arts star.
Velasquez's attorney, Mark Geragos, seemed frustrated with the pace of the hearing.
"It seems like its overkill," he said. "The presentation is not as crisp as I would normally expect."
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Geragos also questioned Sgt. Pires about evidence gathering, specifically its thoroughness.
"We saw this morning, is what I see. Is a complete absence of investigation," he said.
Once prosecutors lay out their case, the judge will determine if there is enough evidence for a jury trial.
