The Sheriff’s Office arrested a San Luis Obispo man on suspicion of murder, after his roommate was found beaten to death in their shared rural SLO trailer.
Sheriff’s spokesman, Tony Cipolla, said the case started at about 7:30 a.m. Monday Nov. 16 when deputies were dispatched to a trailer park in the 600 block of Rancho Oak Dr., in rural SLO.
“When Deputies arrived, they discovered the body of a 54-year-old deceased man. The victim and another man were roommates at the home,” Cipolla said in a news release. That roommate was questioned by detectives who determined that the two men had quarreled the night before. “The argument escalated and investigators believe the victim died from blunt force trauma,” said Cipolla. That was later revealed to have been with a baseball bat.
The roommate, identified as Charles Chad Giese, 40 of San Luis Obispo, was arrested for suspicion of murder and booked into County Jail. The victim was identified as Walter Ernest Vallivero, 54 of San Luis Obispo. Giese is being held in County Jail without bail.
The District Attorney on Nov. 18 formally charged Giese with one count of murder with a special enhancement because he allegedly used the bat and a knife in the commission of the crime. He is slated to be formally arraigned on Dec. 3.
