Local News in Brief : Costa Mesa : Man, 28, Shot to Death During Motel Argument
A 28-year-old man was accidentally shot to death late Wednesday during an argument in a motel room, police said.
The victim, identified as Antonio Sotomayor Alonso, 28, was at the Tahiti Inn on Victoria Street with six friends drinking beer about 9 p.m. when an argument began, Costa Mesa Police Lt. Cliff McBride said.
The others told police that Alonso had brandished a handgun and that it went off as they tried to disarm him, McBride said.
Alonso died late Wednesday night at Fountain Valley Regional Hospital, police said.
The six companions were arrested and at first charged with murder, Lt. Rick Johnson said, but were released Thursday after the coroner’s office ruled that the shooting had been accidental.
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