Police Raid 7 Homes in 2 Cities, Arrest 3 Youths in Shooting Case
Three suspected gang members were arrested early Thursday in connection with a drive-by shooting over the weekend that wounded a Placentia couple, police said.
Police, carrying search and arrest warrants, entered seven homes in Placentia and Anaheim about 7 a.m. and arrested two 16-year-old males and one 17-year-old male on suspicion of attempted murder. They were held in Orange County Juvenile Hall in Orange, said Placentia police spokeswoman Corinne Loomis.
A 15-year-old male wanted in connection with the shooting was arrested Wednesday in Fullerton on suspicion of theft, said Sylvia Palmer Mudrick, a Fullerton police spokeswoman. He was being held in Juvenile Hall.
During the Thursday morning police sweep in Placentia and Anaheim, police seized two loaded, sawed-off shotguns and ammunition, four machetes and clothing linking the juveniles to street gangs, Loomis said.
Investigators refused to provide the addresses of the arrested juveniles, saying that it may jeopardize their attempts to locate others wanted for questioning and possible arrest in connection with the 9:25 p.m. shooting on Saturday.
Police said a couple was walking in the 300 block of West Center Street when a pickup with several people inside drove past them. Someone inside the truck yelled a gang name as the vehicle drove past and a barrage of shotgun blasts rang out.
The victims, identified as Ernesto Silva Jr., 20, and Yvette Herrera, 18, were treated at nearby hospitals and released.
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