One Killed, Two Injured in Gang-Related Shooting

A drive-by shooting left one man dead and another wounded Saturday, and in turn sparked a car accident that injured a pedestrian who was apparently the third intended target of the gunfire.

The shooting occurred just after 3 p.m. at Orange Avenue and Grant Street, an intersection frequented by gang members, Santa Ana Police Sgt. Brian R. Collins said. The shooting appears to be gang-related, he said.

Collin said witnesses told police that three men were drinking beer near a white Mazda pickup parked in front of a house on the southwest corner of Grant Street and Orange Avenue when a dark-colored Ford van approached, driving slowly northbound on Orange.

“The van slows to a stop, somebody opens the sliding door, the two groups trade some insults and then a guy in the van fires a handgun at the others,” Collins said.

One man, Gustavo Velasquez, 29, of Santa Ana, was shot in the chest and taken to Western Medical Center-Santa Ana, where he later died, officials said.

A second man, who was wounded in the arm and chest, either made his way alone or was helped to a house two doors down on Orange Avenue, leaving a trail of blood.

Residents of the house in the 800 block of Orange at first told police they knew nothing about the shooting, but finally allowed officers inside. There, police discovered Raul Ortega, 19, who refused medical treatment and also declined to cooperate with the investigation, Collins said. Ortega later returned to his home several blocks away.

About 90 minutes after the shooting, a man using a cellular telephone in the front yard of the house where Ortega sought help said he did not know Ortega but had tried to help. “I just tried to be a good Samaritan,” he said. He declined to give his name.

The third injury occurred when a man driving west on Grant Street suddenly found himself in the middle of the flying bullets. “He slammed his car into reverse, and backed up into the third guy who’d been standing by the pickup,” Collins said.

The third man was taken to UCI Medical Center, where he was being treated for a separated shoulder and cuts and bruises, authorities said. His name was not released, nor was that of the driver, who was not expected to be cited in the accident, Collins said.

Late Saturday afternoon, the intersection remained blocked off, with yellow, plastic cards marking the location of evidence, including eight stray bullets and bullet fragments. Police were interviewing potential witnesses, but said they had no suspects and little concrete information, other than a description of the van.

A 25-year neighborhood resident who lives a few doors from the scene said shootings are frequent occurrences there.