Suspect’s relatives allegedly helped him dispose of Paso Robles man’s body

February 2, 2021

Two relatives of the man accused of murdering 27-year-old Trevon Perry of Paso Robles testified last week they helped bury the victim’s body in the backyard of a house in Riverside. [Tribune]

In Dec. 2019, Perry testified against a murder defendant who allegedly killed his childhood friend. On March 16, 2020, before a trial date was set in the case, Perry’s family reported him missing.

On June 18, 2020, investigators found Perry’s body at a home in Riverside. Detectives later arrested Nicholas Ron, 23, of Paso Robles for Perry’s murder, and officers arrested several other suspects on accessory to murder charges.

Ron allegedly shot Perry at point-blank range. He has pleaded not guilty to murder, as well as an enhancement for using a firearm. Ron faces 25 years to life in prison if convicted.

At a San Luis Obispo Superior Court hearing last week, two of Ron’s relatives testified against him. Both of the relatives struck deals with prosecutors allowing them to serve probation instead of receiving prison sentences in exchange for their testimony.

The first relative testified he received a single text message from Ron on March 16, 2020, asking for help to “get rid of something.” The relative of the murder defendant then agreed to assist Ron.

The relative testified that he helped Ron try to dispose of Perry’s body in Paso Robles, but the effort did not work. The man then drove with the second relative to Riverside, where several of Ron’s family members live. Ron followed behind them in a separate car.

The first relative said he thought he was helping dispose of a weapon until the second family member told him during the drive to Riverside that he thought there was a body in the trunk. The first relative also said he thought Ron killed Perry because Perry somehow got Ron kicked out of an apartment.

Similarly, the second relative testified he received a text message from Ron saying, “we have to get rid of something.” At the time, he was suffering from heroin withdrawal, the second relative said.

It was not until reaching Ron’s grandmother’s house in Riverside that he was told there was a person in the trunk, the second relative testified. He said Ron never explained to him why he killed Perry.

Prior to burying Perry, Ron and he went to a local hardware store where they purchased four or five bottles of sulfuric acid, which he read somewhere dissolves human remains, the second relative said.

An investigator later testified the two men were seen on store surveillance footage, and Ron used his debit card to pay for the sulfuric acid.

The group ended up abandoning the sulfuric acid plan after trying to place Perry’s body in a barrel with the chemical compound. Eventually, Ron and his two relatives buried Perry’s body about three feet deep in a chicken coop in the backyard of the Riverside home.

Investigators traced Ron’s whereabouts in the aftermath of Perry’s murder from Paso Robles to Victorville to Riverside. Ron made stops at gas stations and convenience stores where he bought items including duct tape, baby wipes, a gas can and gloves, a district attorney’s office investigator testified.

Detectives eventually found the car Ron was driving burned down to metal in a wash in rural Riverside County.

At the conclusion of the hearing on Friday, Judge Jesse Marino ruled enough evidence exists for the case to go to trial. Ron currently remains in custody at the San Luis Obispo County Jail with his bail set at $1.25 million. He is scheduled to be back in court on March 9.