The slaying of a college student from Johns Creek and his girlfriend near a California campus appears to have been solved, according to local police.
San Jose police last week fatally shot a half-naked gunman who was in the middle of a street muttering to himself and threatening officers.
A ballistics test revealed the gun was the same weapon used to kill Eric Kenzo Otokawa, 21, of Johns Creek and his girlfriend, Kristina Lynn Pandula, 20, of Sunnyvale, Calif., according to a report on MercuryNews.com, website of the San Jose Mercury News newspaper.
Police believe Ricardo Moreno, 23, who officers shot during the Oct. 10 confrontation, was responsible for fatally shooting the two former San Jose State University students two days earlier.
Otokawa, who attended San Jose State in the spring, was found dead at his apartment about a mile from campus.
Pandula, a pre-nursing student who attended San Jose State in the summer, was found mortally wounded with Otokawa. She died a day later after being on life support at a local hospital. Both had been shot in the back of the head, police said.
Otokawa and Pandula reportedly had been dating for six months.
Police told the Mercury News Otokawa and Moreno, a senior psychology major, had known each other since last winter and dealt in illegal drugs.
Otokawa sold drugs to Moreno, police said. Pandula, however, appeared to have been an innocent victim of circumstances.
Lt. Alan Cavallo, head of homicide investigations for the San Jose Police Department, said police have no motive for the slayings or why Moreno was in the street wielding the gun. Police suspect he was high on drugs and alcohol.
"It was a bad combination,” Cavallo said. “Maybe he was in pain over what he did."
Eric Otokawa, described by family as a smart and talented man who “loved to be in the spotlight,” grew up in the St. Ives Country Club in what is now Johns Creek. He attended Northview High School before transferring to Woodward Academy and then to Camden Military School in Camden, S.C.
In an interview with Channel 2 Action News, Kenji Otokawa said his brother had planned to transfer from San Jose State, where a campus spokeswoman said he had studied business administration, to a smaller college to play football.
Pandula’s father, still grieving over his “adorable child,” told the Mercury News he was not aware of Otokawa’s alleged drug dealings.
Louis Pandula called Otokawa “a complete gentleman” who always talked about having a career and “what to do with his investments.”
About the Author
