Redlands firefighter lay in wait to kill lover’s husband, D.A. says

Prosecutors say a Redlands firefighter was lying in wait before he gunned down his lover’s husband this summer.

Firefighter Jonathan Michael Hearn, 24, of Hesperia, pleaded not guilty Thursday to killing Robert Limon, 38, on Aug. 17.

Authorities had alleged that Hearn and 35-year-old Sabrina Limon conspired to kill her husband. But no charges were filed against Sabrina Limon due to insufficient evidence, said prosecutor Esther Schlaerth of the Kern County district attorney’s office.

Along with the murder charge, Hearn faces special allegations of lying in wait and of using a firearm during the killing, she said.

Kern County sheriff’s spokesman Ray Pruitt declined to comment about the decision not to prosecute Sabrina Limon or discuss further details about the case.

At the time of their arrests, Pruitt said, detectives had probable cause to take them both into custody.

Limon was shot multiple times in the upper torso inside a BNSF Railway shop in the 1500 block of Goodrick Drive in Tehachapi.

Detectives didn’t initially connect Hearn to Limon’s death, Pruitt said. But during a three-month investigation they learned that Hearn and Sabrina Limon were in a romantic relationship, he said.

Hearn said on his website that he worked in the fire service for nearly a decade and coauthored a book, “Firefighter Story: Candor and Courage.”

The site was “inspired by Sabrina L,” according to the website.

Sabrina Limon wrote about her grief over her husband’s killing in a Sept. 8 Facebook post.

She wrote, “Words can not begin to express my thankful heart. Robert showed his love, compassion, hardworking skills, and genuine kindness to everyone he met.”

Pruitt said detectives were still looking for a man seen in surveillance video taken from the crime scene. The man was near Robert Limon’s body at the time of the incident.

BNSF was also offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Limon’s killer.

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