Man detained in Fresno in connection with woman found dead in Santa Ana motel

Police detectives are interviewing a man in Fresno in connection with a homicide in a Santa Ana motel, authorities said Tuesday.

A Fresno-area law enforcement agency contacted Santa Ana police to request they perform a safety check at the Sunshine Village Motel in the 1400 block of East 1st Street, said Cpl. Anthony Bertagna, a spokesman for the Santa Ana Police Department. When officers arrived about 5:45 a.m., they found the body of a woman in one of the motel’s rooms, he said.

Details about the woman who was not identified, weren’t immediately available, Bertagna said. The room was not registered in her name, so police had to get a search warrant to collect evidence, he said.

Santa Ana detectives later traveled to Fresno to interview a man who had been detained about 3:40 a.m. near Tipton on suspicion of driving under the influence, said Steven Beal, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol Visalia station. Beal did not say how the man may be linked to the motel homicide.

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UPDATES:

2:35 p.m.: This article was updated with the circumstances of the man’s detention in Fresno.

This article was originally published at 1:05 p.m.