A parolee accused of fatally stabbing a 65-year-old sales clerk at a Lake Elsinore Walmart was charged Wednesday with first-degree murder and other offenses.
Lonnie Will Hinton III of Wildomar was arrested Monday after he allegedly killed Jessica Morales of Menifee.
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Along with murder, Hinton is charged with a special circumstance allegation of lying in wait, a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony and parole violations.
He's being held without bail at the Byrd Detention Center and was slated to make his initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.
According to Sgt. Jarred Bishop of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, just before 7 a.m. Monday, Hinton was inside the Supercenter at 29260 Central Ave., just east of Interstate 15, when he confronted Morales.
The specific circumstances were not disclosed, but Hinton allegedly pulled a knife and stabbed the victim, Bishop said.
He said the defendant fled as the woman's co-workers called for help. The store had not yet opened, and no customers were present.
Paramedics arrived within 15 minutes and pronounced Morales dead at the scene.
A possible motive for the attack was not provided.
Bishop said that before investigators could begin a manhunt for the defendant, Hinton walked into the sheriff's Lake Elsinore station early Monday afternoon and surrendered without incident.
According to court records, he has prior convictions for robbery, theft and burglary.
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