Man Is Shot to Death Outside Santa Ana Store

A man was fatally shot in the back early Tuesday as he walked toward a convenience store, police said.

Investigators are trying to determine a motive for the killing of Manuel Ayala Cortez, 21. He was pronounced dead at McFadden Avenue and Bristol Street minutes after the shooting, which occurred shortly after midnight, Santa Ana police spokeswoman Maureen Thomas said.

Cortez and his uncle had been sitting on a bus bench in front of the 7-Eleven when a car pulled up a short distance away and stopped. When Cortez started to walk toward the convenience store, two men got out of the car--one of them armed with a handgun--and followed him, Thomas said.

The gunman shot Cortez “several times” in the back. The uncle, Manuel Ayala Valdez, 23, who was sitting on the bench, ran toward his wounded nephew. The gunman then spun around and pointed the weapon at Valdez, Thomas said.

“The gunman pulled the trigger again,” Thomas said, “but he had expended all his ammunition. The uncle ran and took cover behind some nearby bushes.”

The suspects’ car was last seen speeding off west on McFadden Avenue.

Investigators believe that the assailants had waited in their vehicle before approaching the suspect, Thomas said. Police are trying to determine whether Cortez knew his assailants.