7 Alleged Gang Members Arrested in 2 Drive-By Shootings in Oxnard

Police in Oxnard have arrested seven alleged gang members in connection with two drive-by shootings that occurred minutes apart and sent two people to the hospital with minor wounds.

The first incident occurred at 10:50 p.m. Friday near Channel Islands Boulevard and M Street. Witnesses told police a passenger in a van fired several shots, one of which struck Oxnard resident Rudy Vasquez in the shoulder as he was driving his own car, said Cmdr. Jamie Skeeters.

After a description of the van was broadcast to police, a second drive-by shooting was reported in Durley Park less than two miles away. In that incident, a bullet hit Rudy Perez of Oxnard in the leg as he stood in the park.

Police then spotted the van leaving the area of the park, followed it to an industrial area and stopped it at Commercial Avenue and Mercantile Street. There, they arrested a 16-year-old boy and six adults--Gerardo Reyes, 21, Danny Provencio, 18, Manuel Siller, 22, Richard Ledesma, 21, Jose Deharo, 20 and Jose Martinez, 21, police said.

The adults, who all live in Oxnard, were booked into Ventura County Jail on suspicion of two counts of attempted murder. The 16-year-old was taken to juvenile hall.

Inside the van, police found bullets but no handgun. After a search of the van’s route, police found additional bullets, which they believe had been tossed out the van’s window.

Vasquez and Perez were both treated at St. John’s Regional Medical Center and released.