New developments in the investigation of an early-February shooting of a driver on State Route 44 have led to another man being arrested and additional charges filed against the original suspect, according to Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills.
The arrests
Danny Rodriguez Rivera, 37, of Lena Lane, Eatonton, was arrested on April 8, and charged with one felony count of making false statements in Greene County, and another count of making false statements in Putnam County, and one misdemeanor count driving without a license, according to jail reports. Four days later, one felony count of aggravated assault was added to Rivera’s charges.
Also arrested was Kervin Joel Alicea-Lopez, 22, of Apple Orchard Lane, Greensboro, who was charged with one count of felony aggravated assault.
Both men were employees of Hospitality Staffing Solutions in Atlanta, doing contract work at Ritz-Carlton, Reynolds Lake Oconee, Sills said.
The incident
A night manager at the Reynolds Lake Oconee Ritz-Carlton, 67-year-old Ralph Rella, left work around 11:50 p.m. Feb. 8, and was driving south along State Route 44 to his home in Forsyth.
Somewhere between the bridge at the Greene-Putnam County line and Harmony Road, a white car reportedly pulled up behind and then moved alongside of Rella’s car. Someone inside the car opened fire on Rella’s 2012 Hyundai Sonata, according to Sills.
One of the bullets passed through the driver’s side window and hit Rella in the arm. The gunman fired multiple times and the car then sped on down the road. Rella drove himself to Putnam General Hospital for treatment. From there, he was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Macon. He has since recovered.
The investigation
The sheriff said there were nine bullet holes in Rella’s car and it appeared they came from a handgun, but he is not certain because no gun, ammunition or casings have been discovered.
After spending that night and part of the next day combing the roadway searching for physical evidence, Sills and his deputies spent the next couple of weeks procuring recorded video footage from cameras along Rella’s route of travel from the Ritz in Greene County to the hospital in Putnam.
Through interviews with Ritz employees, Putnam Sheriff’s Sgt. Justin Brock learned there was a confrontation between Rella and another employee, Danny Rodriguez Rivera. Brock questioned Rivera after the shooting, but Rivera said he did not leave the Ritz-Carlton during his shift that night. The next day, he reportedly told Sheriff Sills the same thing.
However, security video footage from the luxury resort hotel reveals Rivera waited in his car for Rella to leave, then followed him out of the parking lot and onto Lake Oconee Trail. Footage from other cameras along Hwy. 44 shows Rivera’s white car behind Rella’s. The Ritz’s security camera video shows Rivera returning to work shortly afterward. No gunfire was captured on any video by the various cameras.
Rivera was arrested on April 8, for making false statements but the investigation continued; and, based on what Sills called corroborated testimony, the aggravated assault charge was added in connection with the shooting, and Alicea-Lopez also was arrested.
Sills said authorities did not initially know Alicea-Lopez was in the car with Rivera.
“But a witness came forward that opened the door to obtain search warrants," Sills explained. "The warrants were executed in Greene County with the assistance of Greene County authorities, and we found sufficient probable cause to obtain search warrants.
"The warrants were executed in Greene County with the assistance of Greene County authorities, and we found sufficient probable cause to charge both of them."