Fernando Alejo, a 23-year-old accused of a homicide in Downtown Willoughby, declined to change his not guilty plea at a Jan. 23 change of plea hearing at the Lake County Common Pleas Court. The case will now go to trial. The date for the jury trial has yet to be determined. According to Lake County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Adam Downing, a number of conversations were had with Dustin Blake, Fernando’s defense attorney, regarding a potential resolution of this case. Fernando Alejo, a 23-year-old Painesville resident accused in a Downtown Willoughby homicide, declined to change his not guilty plea to guilty at a recent change of plea hearing at the Lake County Court of Common Pleas. (Marah Morrison — The News-Herald) “Initially, the state did not make any formal offer,” Downing said during the change of plea hearing. “Through our conversations, it was proposed the possibility of the state offering a charge that was a departure from the murder being some sort of manslaughter charge. After discussing this with the family and our office, the state ultimately decided not to extend any offer that’s a departure from the murder.” The state did not verbally convey to Blake that the state would be willing to offer a plea of guilty of the murder charge as a standalone charge, dismissing counts one and three, but through the verbal negotiations that were had, the charge of murder was a non starter for the defense counsel and his client, Downing said. “The state never officially made that offer, but we did have extensive plea negotiations regarding that, so there’s no offer to the state necessarily presented the defendant is denying, but nonetheless, it’s my understanding there is no resolution on this case and that it will proceed to trial,” he said. Related Articles Crime and Public Safety | Downtown Willoughby homicide suspect arraigned on murder charge Fernando, a Painesville resident, was arraigned on July 15, 2024, via video conference at the Willoughby Municipal Court on the charge of murder. According to Willoughby Police Chief James Schultz, Alejo was not given a bond and will continue to be held at the Lake County Jail until his next court appearance. On the early morning of July 13, 2024, the Willoughby Police Department received a phone call of a shooting incident in the alleyway by 4066 Erie St. The 911 caller reported hearing a gunshot from across the street and located a victim lying on the ground near the back of the alley, unconscious and not breathing. The caller reported that he saw a Hispanic male with long, black hair in pants and a T-shirt running westbound from the scene in the Pranzo alleyway. Willoughby police and fire units were dispatched, and officers then located the victim, Rogelio Isaac Cabrera, a 17-year-old youth from Madison. Officers and paramedics immediately rendered aid, but he died at the scene from the apparent gunshot wounds. At the time, detectives and officers investigating the case learned of the possible suspect involved. Detectives discovered that Alejo was traveling on Interstate 90 and Interstate 80 in Indiana. With the assistance of Indiana State Police, Alejo’s vehicle was stopped and he was secured without incident.