The man accused of murdering TikTok star Anthony Barajas in a movie theater has pleaded not guilty due to insanity.
The man charged with two counts of murder in connection with the July killing of a TikTok star and his friend has pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity.
According to John Hall, a spokesperson for the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, Joseph Jimenez entered the pleas on Monday.
According to the Press-Enterprise, the hearing was held at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
If the defendant is found guilty at trial, “a second phase would be held to determine if the defendant was insane at the time of the crimes,” Hall explained.
On July 26, police said Anthony Barajas, a 19-year-old TikTok influencer, and his friend, 18-year-old Rylee Goodrich, were shot during a screening of the horror film “The Forever Purge” at the Crossings mall in Corona, California. According to Goodrich’s father, the two were on a date.
Barajas had over 940,000 followers and 34 million views on his now-defunct TikTok handle @itsanthonymichael, where he was known for making comedic skits and videos of himself hanging out with friends and family.
According to KABC, a local ABC affiliate, he was a star player on his former high school soccer team.
Goodrich died at the scene, and Barajas died on July 31 while on life support. On GoFundMe, his family raised more than $98,000 to cover his medical expenses. A GoFundMe page set up to help Goodrich’s family raised $77,000.
According to a statement from the Corona Police Department, Jimenez was arrested on July 27 after officers collected witness statements and executed a search warrant on his residence, where officers discovered a firearm and “additional evidence related to the crime scene.”
