Parolee charged with murder in stabbing death of Walmart employee at Lake Elsinore store

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. (KABC) -- A parolee accused of fatally stabbing a Walmart employee at a Lake Elsinore store has been charged with first-degree murder, prosecutors announced Wednesday.

Lonnie Will Hinton III, 29, was arrested earlier this week for allegedly killing Jessica Morales, 65, in an apparent random attack.

Along with murder, Hinton is charged with a special circumstance allegation of lying in wait, a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony and parole violations.

Deputies responded Monday morning to a Walmart store in the 29000 block of Central Avenue after a report of an assault with a deadly weapon. Deputies provided medical aid to Morales, but she was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Authorities said Hinton fled the store after the stabbing but later turned himself in at the Lake Elsinore Sheriff's Station.

Investigators described the attack as a "random event," saying there was no interaction between Hinton and Morales before the stabbing.

In 2021, Hinton pleaded guilty to felony robbery and misdemeanor petty theft charges, according to the Riverside County District Attorney's Office. He was sentenced to five years in prison and was released on parole earlier this year.

Hinton had been slated for arraignment Wednesday afternoon, but Riverside County Superior Court Judge Jeff Zimel postponed the hearing to Thursday morning at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.

The defendant is being held without bail at the Byrd Detention Center. If convicted as charged, he faces a potential life sentence.

City News Service contributed to this report.