ORANGE : Shooting Called Gang-Related; 3 Held

Three suspects have been arrested in connection with an apparent gang-related shooting death of a 20-year-old Corona man.

Police said Roberto Gonzalez was walking down the sidewalk in the 1200 block of North Tustin Avenue, a known hangout for gang members, when a teen-ager and two men approached him and demanded to know what gang he belonged to.

Witnesses said he was walking with three friends, none of whom were injured, at about 4 p.m. Sunday when the incident occurred.

“They (the suspects) didn’t recognize him as being from their area and wanted to know if he was in a gang and what he was doing in their neighborhood,” Police Lt. Ed Tunstall said. “We’re not sure what their actual conversation was; all we know is they got into an argument.”

One of the suspects pulled a handgun, firing once and hitting Gonzalez in the chest, police said. As he lay bleeding on the sidewalk, his assailants, all believed to be gang members, sped away on bicycles.

Gonzalez is believed to have been a member of a Corona gang, police said.

The shooting stunned business owners and customers who frequent the area of small businesses just a block from a popular movie theater.

Revelers at a nearby sports bar said they heard one shot, then ran outside to see a friend of Gonzalez’s cradling the injured man in his arms.

Three Orange residents were arrested Sunday: Jose Cristobal Gonzales, 20; Mynor Arnold Rodriguez, 18, and a 15-year-old who was not identified because he is a juvenile.