Santa Ana : Man Shot After Dispute at Bar; Suspect Arrested
An argument outside a bar erupted into gunfire Sunday morning and ended with one man seriously wounded and another arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, authorities said.
Santa Ana Police Lt. Mike Mitchell said the incident began shortly before 2 a.m. at the Gemini Bar in the 300 block of North Harbor Boulevard. The gunshot victim, identified as Antonio Berron, 22, of Costa Mesa, was talking to two other men in the parking lot when they were approached by Antonio R. Gonzales, 21, described as a transient, Mitchell said.
Berron and Gonzales began arguing for unknown reasons and then Gonzales pulled a gun and fired two shots, Mitchell said. Berron, who wasn’t hit by the first salvo, began running south on Harbor with Gonzales in pursuit.
The two other men, Michael Purdie, 27, and Joseph Brunhuber, 40, both of Costa Mesa, went after the two men in their car. When they pulled over to pick up Berron, Gonzales allegedly fired two more shots, one striking Berron in the back and the other hitting the car.
As the car pulled away, Gonzales allegedly fired two more shots, both striking the driver’s door, Mitchell said. Police arrested Gonzales at the scene and recovered a .38-caliber revolver. Gonzales was booked into the Orange County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder, he said.
Berron was driven to Fountain Valley Regional Hospital by the other two men. He was listed in critical condition Sunday afternoon.
--Andy Rose
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