Mental Competency Hearing Scheduled for Murder Suspect Accused in Horrific Case

A mental competency hearing is scheduled for Valentino Gutierrez, who is charged with murdering his wife and then taking a train from Pasadena to Los Angeles, where some of the woman’s remains were allegedly set on fire in a suitcase in the parking lot of a Home Depot store. 

A mental competency hearing is scheduled Thursday for Valentino Gutierrez, a Pasadena man charged with murdering and dismembering his wife in a 2018 case that has remained unresolved for years. 

The hearing will take place at 8:30 a.m. in Department 113 of the Hollywood Courthouse, following a recent defense motion raising doubts about Gutierrez’s mental fitness to stand trial. 

Gutierrez, 56, is accused of killing his wife, Tiana Alfred, 31, between Jan. 30 to 31, in the abandoned Dona Rosa Bakery & Taqueria in Pasadena.

Prosecutors allege he dismembered her body, placed remains in a suitcase, and transported it by bicycle via the Metro Gold Line from Fillmore Station to Lincoln/Cypress Station. 

On Feb. 1, around 1:30 a.m., firefighters discovered a burning suitcase containing dismembered remains in the Home Depot parking lot at 2055 N. Figueroa St. in Cypress Park. 

Pasadena Police Department officials described the homicide in stark terms. Capt. Billy Hayes of the Robbery-Homicide Division stated,”To dismember an individual like that is pretty grotesque… It takes an awful lot of effort and determination by an individual, which is pretty cold.” 

Deputy Chief Justin Eisenberg added the killing was “a particularly disturbing homicide because of its sheer brutality.” 

On Mar. 1, the coroner positively identified the victim as Tiana Theresa Alfred after recovering her decapitated head. 

Arrested on Feb. 2 outside a homeless shelter, Gutierrez pleaded not guilty on Feb. 15 to charges of murder and arson. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office initially recommended bail at $1 million. 

Court documents reveal Gutierrez has an extensive criminal history, including prior convictions for robbery, battery, domestic violence, narcotics, and weapons offenses. 

The case has experienced multiple continuances since 2018. On July 17, the defense formally raised doubts about Gutierrez’s mental competence, suspending criminal proceedings pending the upcoming evaluation.