After a double shooting in San Jose and Modesto last night, lives have changed forever.
“This is a very tragic series of events that happened,” San Jose Police Dept. Public Information Officer Sgt. Christian Camarillo said.
Around 7 p.m. Tuesday, a man came to a home in San Jose where he shot another man in the street. His three young children came out to find their father dead.
The victim’s family claimed that he is a good person and was never a troublemaker. However, they do not know if he had been connected to the shooter.
Hours later in Modesto, the suspect shot another person.
According to the Modesto Police Dept. Public Information Officer Sharon Bear, the office received a call around 9:20 p.m from a juvenile saying that their mom had been shot.
The second victim was identified as 29-year-old Michelle Rose Gonzales. She was shot and killed by the suspect, who she was romantically involved with, her family confirmed.
Her family says she left behind a 6-month-old son and a 9-year-old daughter.
“She had a big, big heart. She was a wonderful mother,” A family member identified as Norma said. “She loved her son and her daughter very much. But for this to happen to her and her kids, they’re orphans now, you know?”
After the murders, SJPD says that the shooter led a police chase back into San Jose with a woman and two children in a car.
“This was a very violent, armed, and dangerous individual that was on our city streets,” Sgt. Camarillo said.
He dropped the passengers off before barricading himself in a backyard shed of a South San Jose home. According to the police, the suspect fired several shots during the pursuit and while barricaded.
The standoff ended seven hours later.
“The suspect exited the shed that he was barricaded in, holding a firearm pointed at our special operations unit personnel,” Sgt. Camarillo said.
Sgt. Camarillo added that the cameras captured the sounds when officers open fire on the suspect. SJPD says they hit him at least once.
The suspect was transported to the hospital where he died.
According to police reports, it appears that the suspect knew the two victims and he was involved in a different family dispute before the shooting.
“We do want to share our and send condolences to all of the people involved in this tragic series of events,” Sgt. Camarillo said.
