Search warrant in domestic violence case that killed Zahriya Moreno

TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Authorities have issued a search warrant in the domestic violence incident that killed Zahriya Moreno weeks ago.

Moreno was seriously injured on Monday, August 12, during an argument with her boyfriend Angelito Adrian Olivas.

Olivas said Moreno jumped on the trunk of his car and drove away, even though he knew she was there. He was arrested for aggravated assault and released on $2,500 bail.

Moreno died two days later and her organs were donated by her family.

13 News obtained the 13-page search warrant detailing what investigators seized and what they were looking for: Olivas' phone and vehicle.

A blue iPhone and a red Dodge Challenger were seized and investigators hope to get more information on a case in which Moreno was placed in what the warrant calls a “vegetative state.”

The arrest warrant was served on August 12, the same day Moreno was injured.

“Angelito said he was driving away in his vehicle and Zahriya jumped onto the trunk of his car. He continued driving. At some point, Angelito noticed that Zahriya had fallen down. He went to her and found that she was unconscious,” investigators wrote in the arrest warrant.

Two swabs were taken from the trunk of the Challenger, but officers are also examining information stored in the vehicle's crash data logger that accumulated between 6:00 p.m. on August 11 and 8:00 a.m. on August 12.

“This is standard procedure in traffic accidents where there is a fatality,” said Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an EDR records pre- and post-crash status, information on restraint use and activation, and the vehicle's crash signature.

Details, including speed before the crash, are being investigated, and depending on what investigators find out, it could impact whether charges are possible.

“What if the data showed she jumped on the car and he was going 100 miles per hour? What if the data showed she jumped on the car and he was going 5 miles per hour?” Nanos asked.

“We cannot simply ignore the fact that there may be data to support our approach to prosecution in one direction or the other,” he said.

The search warrant states that in addition to the EDR, investigators can also access data from GPS systems, infotainment systems and “transmission units that record vehicle performance.”

Olivas' iPhone is also being examined for physical and digital evidence.

According to the arrest warrant, “the phone’s screen appears to be smeared with dried blood.”

Two swabs from the phone were seized as evidence and on August 15, authorities also conducted a download of the phone.

Once the download is complete, it is expected to be uploaded to evidence.com, a virtual evidence management website.

Nanos also mentioned that the technology resources of other agencies, such as Arizona DPS, could be used to assist with evidence collection and analysis – while still ensuring that the evidence is thoroughly examined.

“The information is never something you want to look away from and ignore,” Nanos said. “We should take everything we have and deal with it.”

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