Los Angeles bus shooting suspect tied to multiple deadly shootings
A 26-year-old man who allegedly shot and killed a man on a Los Angeles bus is connected to three other homicides, police said. Gerry Dean Zaragoza is suspected of killing two members of his family and wounding his mother at an apartment complex and is also accused of shooting two people at a gas station, killing a woman and critically wounding a man.
According to the Los Angeles Metro, riders exiting a bus in the Van Nuys area heard gunshots and then discovered a victim on the bus who was dead. A suspect was seen fleeing the scene in a newer model dark blue, possibly Jeep-style, vehicle with paper plates, the Los Angeles Police Department said. Police responded to reports of a shooting around 1 p.m., CBS Los Angeles reports.
Zaragoza was arrested almost two hours later in the San Fernando Valley, near Los Angeles that's home to nearly 2 million residents. After his arrest, police said he was connected to three other homicides, including the 2 a.m. killing of his father and brother and the fatal shooting of his suspected ex-girlfriend hours later in North Hollywood.
Zaragoza is also linked to a suspected bank robbery.
The Associated Press reports Michael Ramia said Zaragoza's father, Carlos, had worked for him for 12 years as a carpet cleaning technician and described the elder Zaragoza as "a guy with no enemies, very outgoing."
Zaragoza's mother was always friendly, according to a neighbor who spoke to CBS Los Angeles.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti praised the work of the Los Angeles Police Department and mourned those who died.
