Homicide of Inmate at Salinas Valley State Prison in Soledad Under Investigation

APRIL 8, 2025

SOLEDAD, CA – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officials are investigating an alleged homicide of incarcerated person 36-year-old Joseph Mendoza which occurred on Tuesday night, April 8, 2025, at Salinas Valley State Prison (SVSP) in Soledad.

At approximately 5:39 p.m., staff observed incarcerated persons 30-year-old Edgar Frayre and 32-year-old Nicolas Young attacking Joseph Mendoza with improvised weapons on the dayroom floor in Facility C. Staff immediately responded and issued several verbal commands to stop, which were ignored. Staff then deployed multiple less-than-lethal use-of-force options, which ultimately quelled the incident. Frayre and Young were secured in handcuffs.

Medical aid was initiated for Mendoza; however, he was pronounced deceased at 6:10 p.m. Medical evaluations were conducted on Frayre and Young, and no serious injuries were reported.

Frayre and Young have been placed in restricted housing pending an investigation by the SVSP Investigative Services Unit and the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office for possible felony prosecution.

Mendoza was received from Fresno County on July 29, 2009, to serve 22 years and 4 months for robbery (second strike) and attempted murder (second strike). While incarcerated, he received an additional 4 years for possession/manufacture of a deadly weapon by a prisoner and battery on a non-prisoner (second strike), totaling 26 years and 4 months.

Frayre was received from San Joaquin County on April 2, 2014, to serve 50 years and 8 months for voluntary manslaughter and participation in a criminal street gang act.

Young was received from Santa Clara County on January 31, 2018, to serve 25 years for attempted second-degree murder (second strike). While incarcerated, he received an additional 11 years for in-prison attempted second-degree murder (second strike), totaling 36 years.

SVSP opened in May 1996 in Monterey County. The institution provides long-term housing for approximately 2,400 minimum- and maximum-custody incarcerated individuals and employs about 1,500 staff.

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