Fred Perez, 72, of Santa Cruz was shot and killed while working in his yard on the morning of February 13, 1973. Perez came from one of the oldest pioneer families in Santa Cruz and was well known in the local fishing industry; he had served in China during World War I and boxed professionally as Freddie Bell for three years before retiring. Neighbors heard the shot and reported a station wagon leaving the area. A sheriff’s deputy first thought Perez had suffered a heart attack before the severity of his wounds was clear.

Police pursued and stopped a blue Chevrolet station wagon minutes after the killing on River Street near Coral Street and took 25-year-old Herbert William Mullin into custody; officers found a rifle in the vehicle that was believed to have been used in the shooting. The attack was described by law enforcement as senseless and without an apparent motive. Mullin was later convicted of multiple murders, including Perez’s killing, and received life sentences.

Did anyone in Santa Cruz at the time remember seeing a blue Chevrolet station wagon or note suspicious activity near River and Coral on February 13, 1973?