PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Search warrants obtained by Target 12 show police used cellphone data to help identify and charge suspects in an Aug. 2024 homicide in Providence , and that a pair of sandals left near the crime scene helped detectives identify one of the accused.
On Aug. 25, Providence police officers found Darmani Balbuena, 18 , suffering from multiple gunshot wounds at a Rhodes Street apartment complex. Balbuena died a short time later.
Two spent shell casings were seized by investigators at scene.
Court documents show multiple witnesses told police they saw people dressed in all black who jumped a fence behind the complex. They then ran away toward Borinquen Street shortly after shots were heard.
Police found two men, later identified as Julien Santiago, 20, and Jalen Santiago, 18, acting suspicious in an empty lot nearby. Both men were detained after police said they couldn’t provide “a logical reason” for their presence there.
In the empty lot, detectives found a firearm with two live rounds and one spent shell casing, in addition to a set of keys that would later match a gray Honda Accord witnesses reported seeing casing the neighborhood hours before the shooting.