Fairfield man, 23, arraigned on murder charge for hit-and-run death of nephew, 2

Judge orders Cirilo M. Tellez to return for pretrial proceedings April 14 in Department 5

Following a held-to-answer arraignment Wednesday, a Solano County Superior Court judge ordered a 23-year-old Fairfield man to return to Department 5 to face pretrial proceedings on allegations of murder and felony hit-and-run in connection to the death of the man’s toddler nephew more than a year ago.

After a preliminary hearing in February, Judge Stephanie Grogan Jones determined there was enough evidence to hold Cirilo Martinez Tellez for trial, then scheduled him to return for the arraignment, and told him to return at 8:30 a.m. April 14 for a readiness conference and trial setting in the Justice Center in Fairfield.

Fairfield police and court records indicate that at about 2 p.m. Feb. 23, 2020, officers and firefighters responded to reports of a collision in the 1400 block of West Texas Street. Upon arrival, officers found a 2-yearold boy who had been struck by a vehicle. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries. The boy was not identified, but police revealed that Tellez was his uncle.

According to police, Tellez, who requires a Spanish-language interpreter during court proceedings, reportedly fled the collision moments afterward but left his vehicle at the scene. Police impounded the vehicle to search for evidence to help with the investigation. Based on witness statements and evidence collected at the scene, police determined that alcohol impairment allegedly played a role in the collision.

Police also said they recovered video surveillance footage that captured the direction in which Tellez fled. As the investigation proceeded, with enough evidence to indicate that a crime occurred, police used social media and community alerts to help locate Tellez, a previously convicted felon.

At 6 p.m., police said Tellez returned to the scene and was taken into custody. He was booked into Solano County Jail on an arrest warrant. Bail was set at $235,000, and he remains in custody.

The Solano County District Attorney filed its complaint Feb. 25, the day Tellez first appeared in court.

Police initially presented the case to the District Attorney’s Office for review to consider additional charges of murder, violating his probation, and felony DUI resulting in death. Afterward, the DA’s Office upgraded a vehicular manslaughter charge to murder.

If found guilty at trial, Tellez would face a maximum prison term of 25 years, plus more time for any other charges and for being a previously convicted felon.