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The killing of Jake Clyde Merendino in May 2015 is a crime characterized by a monetary motive, a con, and a planned act of violence. Merendino, a Texan retiree in his early 50s, was killed near a ravine in Rosarito, Mexico, shortly after he had just closed on a posh oceanfront condo. His younger boyfriend, David Enrique Meza, was a suspect right from the start.
The ensuing investigation and trial uncovered a life of deception, a fake will, and a double existence by Meza. As per the Los Angeles Times, prosecutors contended Meza murdered Merendino so he could inherit the newly purchased condo and other property. The case was newsworthy in its international aspects, as well as because of Meza's girlfriend, Taylor Marie Langston, who was ultimately convicted of obstruction of justice.
The case of the murder of Jake Clyde Merendino will be featured in the premiere episode of Fatal Destination on June 3, 2025, on ID.
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Five important facts that characterize the killing of Jake Clyde Merendino
1) Merendino and Meza were financially entangled and romantically involved
According to a Los Angeles Times article dated May 2, 2017, Jake Clyde Merendino and David Enrique Meza became acquainted in 2013 after Meza placed an ad on the internet. Their relationship soon became financially entangled.
Merendino showered Meza with pricey gifts, such as a sports car and bundles of cash, as per the Los Angeles Times. Meza also claimed that he was the beneficiary of Merendino's will. This level of financial dependence paved the way for things that were to come.
2) Merendino was murdered in May 2015, two years after he met Meza
As per a CNN article published December 25, 2015, Jake Clyde Merendino and David Enrique Meza had gone to a hotel in Rosarito and checked in on May 1, 2015, since the newly purchased condo was still under construction. A December 24, 2015, report by NBC San Diego claimed that Meza rode his motorcycle to the U.S. later that night but turned around and went back to Mexico at 11 pm.
As documented in Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals records, around 2 a.m. on May 2, Merendino received a call from Meza saying that his motorcycle had ceased functioning and needed assistance. Merendino went out of the hotel to help him and was never seen alive afterward.
3) Merindo was found nearly decapitated
According to a press release by the South District of California Attorney's Office dated December 11, 2017, Jake Clyde Merendino's corpse was found in a ravine along the highway between Rosarito and Ensenada.
The release stated that Merendino was stabbed 24 times, with two gaping slash wounds around his neck. His corpse was then dragged and dumped in the ravine. Stolen items were his iPhone, iPad, laptop, and a diamond-stuffed Rolex watch, according to the December 2015 report by NBC San Diego.
4) The motive behind the murder was inheritance
According to a May 2, 2017, article by the Los Angeles Times, prosecutors contended that Meza's motive was monetary. Following the homicide, Meza presented a handwritten will dated December 2014. It listed him as the exclusive beneficiary of Jake Clyde Merendino's assets, including the $273,000 condominium and other possessions worth millions.
Meza moved swiftly to probate the will and withdrew cash from their shared account, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals records reported.
5) Meza was found guilty of murder and conspiracy
According to Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals records, GPS records and security camera footage put Meza on the crime scene and revealed him changing clothes before re-entering the United States at approximately 4 a.m. Meza and his girlfriend, Taylor Marie Langston, at first offered a false alibi, but testimony and phone records proved them wrong, as per the report.
Meza was found guilty of murder and conspiracy to impede justice following a trial that lasted two weeks and was given a sentence of life in a federal prison as well as an additional 20 years for obstruction of justice, according to the December 2017 South District of California Attorney's Office press release.
For more details on the murder of Jake Clyde Merendino, watch Fatal Destination on ID.
