Police Arrest Oxnard Resident in Slaying of College Ballplayer

Oxnard police on Thursday arrested a 20-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting a college baseball player last weekend after confronting a group of athletes as they munched hamburgers along a quiet residential street.

Albert Carrillo of Oxnard was apprehended without incident at a friend’s Oxnard house after witnesses identified him as the person who pulled out a handgun and fired at Pedro “Peter” Reveles early Saturday, authorities said.

Police also searched several other residences Thursday afternoon and evening, seeking three or four young men who were with Carrillo when he allegedly opened fire, police said.

“We got a huge amount of support in this case -- both from witnesses and people in the community who were willing to talk with us,” said police Cmdr. Brian MacDonald. “If we had this kind of help in all our cases we would be unstoppable.”

The outpouring of information resulted from the popularity of Reveles, a 21-year-old pitcher for the Oxnard College baseball team, MacDonald said.

“This young man was the apple of his family’s eye, the first in his family to go to college, an athlete and just a well-rounded kid,” MacDonald said.

“He had everything going for him, and there was no reason for his life to be cut short,” MacDonald said.

Reveles had earned an associate of arts degree and had been admitted to San Francisco State next fall.

About 500 friends, family and city officials attended his funeral Wednesday in an outpouring of affection for a player described by teammates as a hard-working, fun-loving leader.

Authorities said Reveles was killed after he and several other baseball players grabbed meals at a Jack in the Box in north Oxnard, then pulled over on a nearby street to eat and talk.

“They were just sitting outside their car, not causing any problem, and these guys got out and began talking to them,” MacDonald said.

“At first it was just a conversation. There’s an indication some of the ballplayers knew some of the other guys,” he said.

But an argument broke out, and police said Carrillo opened fire shortly after midnight.

Reveles died less than two hours later at St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Oxnard.

Reveles and his friends were not gang members, but Carrillo may be a gang associate, MacDonald said.