Video shows fatal shooting of Oakland mother who confronted suspected drug dealers; 3 arrested
Oakland police on Friday announced they have arrested an adult male and two teens in connection with the fatal shooting of a mother of eight who confronted alleged drug dealers in front of her home earlier this month.
The Oakland Police Department made the announcement during a press conference late Friday morning. Maria Ramos was fatally shot in East Oakland on August 7th.
The shooting happened in the afternoon on the 5600 block of Hilton Street. Officers arrived at around 2:30 p.m. and found a victim suffering from at least one gunshot wound. The person was pronounced deceased at the scene.
As CBS News Bay Area reported earlier this week, the incident happened when Ramos and her mother confronted a group in a car suspected of dealing drugs near the intersection of Hilton Street and Bancroft Avenue. Police said she was shot by one of the people in the vehicle.
Newly obtained surveillance footage showed the shooting that killed Ramos.
The suspects were in the sedan seen in the video. The victims stopped their SUV right next to them. Ramos is seen coming out and approaching the suspects.
They immediately shot at her, and the passenger fired more shots as she ran away.
On Friday, Oakland police shared how they were able to make a quick arrest, confirming that a young adult male and two teenage boys were quickly identified and arrested.
"Within minutes, our patrol team and our special resources team sprung into action, identifying the vehicle, locating the vehicle and then quickly taking three suspects into custody within the next 12 hours," said Deputy Chief of Police Frederick Shavies.
Police did not identify the adult who was arrested in the case.
The death of the 33-year-old mother of eight children -- who range in age from 1 to 15 -- has left the family devastated.
Earlier this week, the victim's mother Blanca Velasco said Ramos's 5-year-old girl is still waiting for her mom to come home.
"She says, 'I hear mommy is dead, but she's still coming back from the hospital, right grandma?'" said Blanca Velasco, Ramos' mother. "I would be like, 'yeah,' because I don't know how to tell her she's not coming back."
On Friday, Velasco said she felt justice had been served.
"I'm satisfied that they got the people right away," Velasco said. "I'm just not happy with them releasing one of them."
Velasco was the driver behind the wheel of the SUV in the video. She said detectives released one boy who was a passenger in the suspect's car with a GPS ankle monitor.
"I'm angry because my daughter is not coming back home. Why did he get to go home?" Velasco asked.
Detectives are investigating if Ramos sprayed the suspects with pepper spray before they shot her.
"I'm not saying she did, because I really did not witness it," said Velasco. "But even if she did, that is not excuse to take somebody's life."
Authorities believe it was a minor who fired the shots that killed Ramos. Velasco worries given the age, the district attorney won't charge him as an adult.
"If you're big enough to get a gun and kill somebody, you're big enough to pay the price ," she said.
Velasco told CBS News Bay Area she is planning to move out of Oakland with her grandkids so they can be safe.