A Lemon Grove resident accused of killing one man and injuring several other people in a trio of shootings in Encanto, Bay Terraces and Spring Valley was ordered Wednesday to stand trial on murder and attempted murder charges.
Jaime Gonzalez, 23, was arrested after allegedly opening fire on seven victims during a shooting spree that unfolded over about an hour on the night of Jan. 27. Police believe the victims were targeted at random, with Gonzalez reportedly driving up to each group, getting out of his car and opening fire.
The first shooting happened just after 8 p.m. in Spring Valley, where police say one person was shot on Dovecrest Court.
At a preliminary hearing held in San Diego Superior Court on Wednesday to determine whether Gonzalez should go to trial on the charges, sheriff’s Deputy Luis Duran testified that the first victim was outside helping a neighbor with her car battery when a silver sedan pulled up alongside him.
The man told police that he asked the driver if he needed directions, but the man behind the wheel told him to “mind his own business.” The driver later got out of his car, pointed a gun at the man’s chest and fired from about 10 yards away, but the bullet missed the victim and struck a house, Duran testified.
The next shooting happened about 20 minutes later outside the 62nd Street trolley station, where Gonzalez allegedly shot at four teenage boys.
While police originally said two of the boys were shot, San Diego police Detective Alex Pockett testified that investigators later learned a third boy suffered a graze wound to his chest. All three victims who were shot were 15 years old at the time.
According to testimony and Metropolitan Transit System surveillance footage played during the hearing, the shooter’s vehicle drove past the boys as they walked along Akins Avenue. The car then made a U-turn, and its driver got out and started shooting at the teens, who took off running.
At around 9:15 p.m., the shooter’s vehicle passed two men standing near an electrical box on Manzana Way, and similarly made a U-turn and stopped next to the men, Detective Irving Rosas testified, citing surveillance footage captured from a nearby residence.
Both men were shot, and one of the victims, 32-year-old Raul Rojas Valdez, died at the scene.
The prosecution and defense stipulated that Rojas Valdez sustained seven gunshot wounds to his head, shoulder and torso, as well as 14 “sharp force injuries” to his head and torso.
The surviving victim, who was also shot multiple times, told police that a silver car stopped in the middle of the street and the driver got out and asked the men for directions. When the victim saw the driver was holding a gun, he started running and was shot in the process, according to testimony.
Gonzalez was arrested about a half-hour later in his parked vehicle, which police said matched the description of the shooter’s car.
Investigators said they found an unserialized “ghost gun” inside the car, ammunition in the center console, and a knife. Gonzalez also had another knife in his waistband, officials said.
Rosas testified that he later searched the car and found blood on the center portion of the steering wheel.
During the preliminary hearing, officers testified that Gonzalez’s clothing and car matched descriptions provided by multiple victims and witnesses at each shooting scene. Spent casings found at each shooting scene also matched the caliber and brand of ammunition found in Gonzalez’s car, according to testimony.
The preliminary hearing also featured Snapchat messages allegedly sent from Gonzalez to three other people on Jan. 26 and Jan. 27, showing he made a concerted effort to buy a gun, prosecutors said.
While Gonzalez was unable to obtain a firearm from the first two people he messaged, Rosas said the messages indicated that he picked up a gun from the third person sometime during the day of the shootings.
Gonzalez reportedly sent a message to that person thanking them for the weapon around 6:15 p.m. Jan. 27, less than two hours prior to the first shooting.
