Witness descriptions lead to quick arrests in Sunday shooting

YAKIMA, Wash. — Within a half hour of a shooting this evening, authorities arrested the man they think pulled the trigger thanks to good descriptions from several witnesses in a Northeast Yakima neighborhood.

The victim, a 22-year-old male, was shot in the abdomen and leg, said Yakima police Lt. Nolan Wentz. The man was dropped off at Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital shortly after a shooting was reported about 5:15 p.m. near North Sixth and H streets.

Officers quickly locked down a house on North Sixth Street after the shooting and arrested two people inside, Wentz said. Off-duty detectives were being called in to conduct interviews.

In months past, residents in this gang-ridden neighborhood have expressed hesitation to call authorities when they hear gunshots out of fear of retaliation. That seems to be changing.

“It’s people starting to get sick of it,” Wentz said. “We’ve got several good witness calls.”

More information on the victim’s condition or the suspect was not immediately available.


— Melissa Sánchez

http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2010/02/21/witness-descriptions-lead-to-arrest-in-sunday-shooting

Sunnyside- shooting on Cascade Way

A shooting was reported near the 1700 Block of Cascade Way on Wednesday, February 18th. No casualties or arrests are known.

Yakima man charged in stabbing death

YAKIMA, Wash. - Authorities today formally charged the 42-year-old man accused in Monday’s fatal stabbing.

Richard Solis, of Yakima, was charged with second-degree murder in Yakima County Superior Court.

He is accused of stabbing 21-year-old Ali Lemus Vargas [an alleged Norteno gang member] multiple times in the head, chest and hands early Monday, authorities said. Lemus Vargas was found about 2:30 a.m. Monday near Pleasant Avenue and West Pierce Street.

Yakima police officers followed a trail of blood that led to a residence in the 1500 block of Seventh Avenue, where they found Solis.

Authorities said an interview with the suspect revealed that an argument between the two led to the stabbing.

Solis is being held on a $500,000 bail in Yakima County Jail. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 2.

- Melissa Sanchez

http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2010/02/18/yakima-man-charged-in-stabbing-death

Yakima- stupid gangbanger shoots himself

YAKIMA -- Police say they have debunked a man's claim that he was shot by someone in a passing car.

The 29-year-old Yakima man reported early Friday that he suffered a gunshot wound to the upper inside right thigh, according to a news release from the Yakima Police Department.

The man said he was walking about 2:40 a.m. toward the 7-Eleven store at 16th and Summitview avenues when someone in a passing vehicle shot him.

Based on evidence at the scene, police said, investigators questioned the man's account of the incident.

The man's pants did not have a bullet hole, but his boxers did, according to the news release. That led police to determine that the man was wounded when the gun discharged while in his waistband.

No charges are being sought against the man, who claimed to be affiliated with a gang, authorities said.

In April 2008, a 20-year-old man claimed that he had been shot in the groin during a drive-by shooting. Police determined that he shot himself with two loads of buckshot after placing the barrel down his pants.

That man was seriously wounded.

http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2010/02/17/02-18-10-tieton-mayor

Sunnyside- 22 year old shot

Jose Acevedo, 22, of Sunnyside suffered non-life threatening injuries as a result of a bullet hitting his leg in a shooting incident that occurred at approximately 6:40 a.m. this morning (Wednesday) in the 1000 block of South 10th Street, according to Sunnyside police.

Police responded to the call and are still investigating the incident, but were told a van with tinted windows was involved.

Officials said preliminary information provided to them indicates the victim was walking down the street when several shots aimed in his direction were fired from the van.

Acevedo was treated and released from Sunnyside Community Hospital this morning.

Witness statements, as well as a victim's statement, were still being taken as of press time.

Sunnyside Police Department officials said further details will be forthcoming, but anyone with information that might lead to a suspect, suspect vehicle or other information regarding the incident is asked to call 836-6200.

In other news, an apartment manager told the Daily Sun News last Saturday morning's shooting incident resulted in bullets striking two apartment units at the Meadow Apartments in the 1400 block of South Sixth Street just after 1:30 a.m.

The apartment manager said one bullet traveled through a window and two walls before stopping in a second apartment.

Two bullets, he shared, struck the complex, and one of the apartments struck was occupied by a mother and her young child.

The apartment manager plans to speak with police regarding the incident, and he said the problem is ongoing, involving suspects with whom the police have had prior contact.

The Sunnyside Police Department is still investigating the Saturday incident and officials said concerns regarding the incident will be addressed at the conclusion of the investigation.

http://www.dailysunnews.com/DSNNews6.shtml

Grandview house shot at

Just after 3 p.m. yesterday (Monday) a woman living in the 1600 block of Apricot Road near Grandview called the Yakima County Sheriff's Office stating she found a bullet hole in her bedroom. The hole led her to discover the bullet had traversed through the room. Further inspection led to the discovery of another bullet hole outside her home.

The woman told deputies she did not know when the bullets had been fired at her home.

http://www.dailysunnews.com/DSNNews10.shtml

Sunnyside- Meadows apartments shot up

This past weekend at the Meadows apartments at the 1400 block of S 6th St in Sunnyside, two shootings were reported early the 13th, one at about 1:30am, and another a couple hours later. The Daily Sun News had initially reported it as shots being fired into the air, but the manager of the apartments told the Daily Sun that two apartments had been hit, one of which had a mother and small child inside.

Also on the 13th, a shooting was reported at S 11th and Tacoma Ave in Sunnyside.