SAN ANTONIO – The trial for a man accused in the murders of Savannah Soto, Matthew Guerra and their unborn child will get underway with jury selection on Monday.
Christopher Preciado is facing up to life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.
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December 2023
What began as a missing-person report just before Christmas 2023 became one of the most talked-about cases in San Antonio.
Soto, who was expected to be induced to deliver her son, never showed up for her appointment on Dec. 22, 2023.
Soto and her boyfriend, Guerra, were last heard from on Dec. 21, 2023, according to family and police statements.
Soto’s family reported her as a missing person, and authorities issued a statewide CLEAR Alert on Christmas Day.
By Dec. 26, Soto and Guerra were found dead in Guerra’s vehicle at an apartment complex in Leon Valley, police said.
At the time, SAPD released very little information but said both were found with gunshot wounds.
Investigation
Investigators later released security video on Dec. 28 that appeared to show a truck pulling up beside Guerra’s vehicle and two people appearing to clean the car door.
On Jan. 3, 2024, arrests were made. Christopher Preciado, 19, was arrested and charged with capital murder, and his father, Ramon Preciado, was arrested on charges of tampering with evidence and abuse of a human corpse, according to arrest records and police statements.
Authorities also arrested Myrta Romanos, Christopher Preciado’s mother, on allegations that she tried to help cover up the crime.
Soto and Guerra’s families said they did not know Christopher and Ramon Preciado. Police said the dispute that led to the killings began with a drug deal.
According to an arrest affidavit, Christopher Preciado told police that Guerra pulled a gun on him and that he was able to “manipulate it,” and that Soto and Guerra were shot in that sequence.
Police said Christopher Preciado’s version of events did not match the crime-scene evidence.
Heading to trial
The case moved through the court system once the three suspects were indicted.
Ramon Preciado, in February 2025, was able to get released from the Bexar County Adult Detention Center after his bond was reduced.
Romanos was expected to go to trial in November 2025, but after the state sought a reset that the court denied, prosecutors dismissed all charges against her.
The case against Christopher Preciado moved forward and was finally set for trial.
Jury selection is set to begin on March 16, and opening statements and testimony are scheduled to start on March 17.
The trial is expected to last more than a week. The witness list includes law enforcement officers from multiple agencies, an expert witness and family members from the Guerra and Soto families.
The witness list also includes Ramon Preciado and Romanos, but it’s not known whether they will be called up or not.
The judge is not allowing the trial to be livestreamed, but KSAT 12 will have continuous updates on the case.
More coverage of this story on KSAT: