San Bernardino Police Ask Public For Help Solving 5 Homicides, Including Fatal Shooting Of Teacher
SAN BERNARDINO (CBSLA) — San Bernardino police released new details today in connection with five homicides and two attempted homicides in hopes that the public can help solve them.
Last summer, 24-year-old Nancy Magaña was shot to death in front of her 5-year-old son outside of Delmann Heights Park near the intersection of 30th and Flores streets.
"Six months later, hearing that there might be a glimpse of hope, it's definitely a small weight lifted off my shoulders," Guadalupe Magaña, the victim's sister, said. "We just want to know who's responsible for this."
Newly released video shows a white car pulling into the parking lot of the park just before the shooting took place and leaving immediately after.
Police also asked for the public's help in the case of a 2-year-old girl who died after her father was shot while driving their car, causing the car to crash.
"They were going 40 mph on Cajon when another car approached them and started shooting as they were driving," Sgt. Al Tello, of the San Bernardino Police Department, said. "That's what caused the driver to crash, and then that crash ultimately killed the child."
The deaths of Magaña and the toddler are just two of the five homicides on the city's west side that detectives said were connected, the suspect or suspects still on the loose.
"They're very close to each other, a couple miles apart," Tello said. "It's the west side of our city, a high gang area, and there's some other information that I don't want to share today that points to that, so we're just asking for somebody to call us or email or something to help break the case wide open."
Within the last few weeks, there have been three more homicides, men shot in the same area west of the 215 Freeway. Police said home security video captured one of the getaway cars as it fled the scene.
"It's often been said that 90% of crimes are committed by 10% of the population, and I think that kind of fits what's going on here," Chief Eric McBride, of San Bernardino PD, said.
McBride said the city recently switched to a community-based policing effort, one that he said had already helped solve some crimes in the city.