East Grand Forks Man Waives His Right to a Preliminary Hearing

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(KNOX) – Court records indicate that a East Grand Forks man waived his preliminary hearing. He instead plead not guilty to the murder of his dad.

Vincent Villarreal, 32, faces up to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole if convicted of Class AA felony murder.

Grand Forks Police responded to a hotel Dec. 5, 2020, after receiving a report of a death.

There they located Jeffrey Shulzitski, 55, Villarreal’s dad.

According to legal documents, an autopsy said that Shulzitski’s death was a homicide. The cause of death was a gunshot wound.

Bystander accounts and security video indicated that Villarreal arrived at the hotel early on the afternoon of Dec. 4 to visit his father, and while they were both inside the hotel room, a firearm was discharged, according to an affidavit.

A witness alleged Villarreal was the shooter. Witness said that Villarreal left the room after the shooting.

Villarreal has been in custody on unrelated charges in the years since his father’s death.

Villarreal was arrested in Crookston late December 2020.