“This has to stop!” one witness pleads after deadly Coachella shooting

COACHELLA, Calif. — Authorities say a man was fatally shot at the Coachella Valley Apartments in Coachella late Friday evening, April 30. No arrests have been made related to the deadly shooting, which happened in the 84900 block of Bagdad Avenue, west of Harrison Street.

“This has to stop!” one witness later said from the scene of the fatal incident. The woman, who said her home has been struck by gunfire “a minimum of 13 times” pleaded that area residents “speak up”, and help put a stop to the gun violence that another witness said has “plagued the area for years.”

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Deputies assigned to the Thermal Sheriff’s Station were dispatched to the scene around 11:50 p.m. after receiving the report of an assault with a deadly weapon, Riverside Sheriff’s Central Homicide Unit Sergeant Ben Ramirez later said of the incident.

When deputies arrived they located a male victim with gunshot wounds. He was transported by Air Ambulance to a local hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries and passed away.

The victim has since been identified as Manuel Rodriguez, 25, of Coachella.

Sheriff’s Central Homicide Unit and Thermal Sheriff’s Station investigators have assumed the investigation into a shooting that killed a 25-year-old man at a Coachella apartment complex late Friday night. KESQ News Channel 3 image

Deputies secured the area as a crime scene and investigators from the Thermal Station and Sheriff’s Central Homicide Unit responded to the scene and assumed the investigation.

They, along with specialists from the department’s Forensic Services Bureau, were later seen documenting, photographing, and collecting evidence from the scene; including what appeared to be numerous shell casings from the parking lot area of the apartment complex.

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Area witnesses, including nearby resident, Elvira Carrillo, later told KESQ News Channel 3’s Shelby Nelson they heard multiple shots before sheriff’s deputies and medical personnel converged on the scene.

Carrillo explained she and other family members had just finished barbecuing when numerous gunshots rang out.

“We were in the patio when I heard 5-6 shots,” Carrillo described. “Then I heard about a 2-second hesitation and then another, what seemed like 6-7 shots.”

“This has to Stop!” area resident Elvira Carrillo, who said her home has been shot thirteen times, later pleaded. “It’s frustrating because these boys are too young to die.” KESQ News Channel 3 image

Carrillo said when she went to try and see what had happened, she began to see deputies flooding into the area.

“I got in my car and I came down [Avenue] 52, I turned. All of a sudden I see a policeman coming out of 6th street with his lights and turn on this street so I came back and then I saw that there was a few other police,” Carrillo told Shelby.

As she got closer to the scene of the shooting, Carrillo said she heard a woman crying loudly and, unaware that a man had been fatally shot, told Shelby she hoped nobody’s child was killed in the shooting. She later learned that she knew the victim and his family.

“This has to stop!” Carrillo pleaded; saying her house has been shot “a minimum of 13 times”, including nine times over a three month period.

“People need to speak up,” Carrillo continued; adding, “It’s frustrating because these boys are too young to die.”

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The Sheriff’s investigation is ongoing and no further information has been released.

Anyone with additional information regarding this investigation is encouraged to call Investigator Glasper at the Thermal Station at (760) 863-8990 or Investigator Barajas with the Central Homicide Unit at (951) 955-2777. Callers can refer to incident file number Y211200050 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s Homicide Tipline.

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Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 49, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).

Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County-based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.