BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — A Dollar Tree employee accepted a settlement after being convicted of shoplifting for stabbing a man.
The Kern County District Attorney’s Office announced on August 12, 2024, that Dylan Franco pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds that he was guilty of murder by the use of a knife.
Prosecutors said Bakersfield police officers were called to 2607 Haley Street on February 21, 2024, where a “man was lying on the ground” next to the Dollar Tree store. When officers arrived, they found a man, later identified as Aaron Delgado, lying in the parking lot west of the Dollar Tree.
According to the prosecutor’s office, several unopened food items were covered with numerous drops of blood on the way to the victim’s body.
RELATED TOPICS: BPD arrests 21-year-old suspect in fatal stabbing on Haley Street
Officers found Delgado had suffered a stab wound to his left rear rib and a laceration to his hand. Life-saving measures were administered, but Delgado died.
Prosecutors said an investigation found that Franco, a Dollar Tree store employee, confronted Delgado when he was carrying stolen groceries from the store.
According to prosecutors, Delgado climbed over a fence in an attempt to escape and after a brief altercation, Franco ran away from the scene. Delgado had run away from the scene of the altercation but soon collapsed and died. A vegetable knife was found under his body.
Delgado’s possession of a knife was a significant factor in the case, and the investigation left open questions as to whether and, if so, what role Delgado’s possession of a weapon played in the altercation between the two men.
District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer commented, “Killing a human being without legal justification has consequences, but the individual circumstances of each case must be considered when reaching an appropriate resolution. The fact that Delgado was armed and actively committed a brazen theft must be considered in addition to Franco’s use of deadly force during the altercation. The resolution was reached by considering all of the unique factors of the case.”
The verdict is scheduled for September 10, 2024; Franco faces a prison sentence of up to four years.
