Teenage Homicide Victim Was Novato High School Student, San Rafael Resident
NOVATO (CBS SF) -- A 17-year-old boy who was killed in an open space preserve in Novato has been identified as a San Rafael resident and a Novato High School student.
Edwin Josue Ramirez Guerra was pronounced dead around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in Ignacio Valley Open Space Preserve near the end of Fairway Drive in Novato, according to the Marin County Sheriff's Office.
"Forensic tests including toxicology scheduled for early next week to determine cause and manner of death," according to the sheriff's office.
On Wednesday evening, Marin County sheriff's deputies and Novato police officers responded to the open space preserve and located one of the shooting victims. That victim had also been stabbed and was transported to the hospital with serious injuries.
The second shooting victim, Guerra, was later located nearby and pronounced deceased at the scene, according to the sheriff's office.
Marin County Sheriff's Lt. Doug Pittman said the first victim they found is now in stable condition.
The suspects were described as three Hispanic males and were the focus of an intense manhunt, according to the sheriff's office.
On Thursday afternoon, two minors were detained in connection with the fatal shooting during high-risk tactical raids in Novato.
Both suspects are linked to the fatal shooting of Guerra and the injury assault on the other Novato High School student, Marin County sheriff's officials said.
Pittman confirmed that the two suspects who were detained are juveniles who attend Novato High School and that a third suspect remains at large.
The identities of the two students who were detained have not been publicly announced.
Around 3 p.m. on Thursday, Marin County sheriff's deputies and officers from local police agencies staged a tactical raid at Roland Way and Novato Boulevard in a home located just a few blocks from Novato High School.
SWAT officers stormed the home with assault rifles at the ready. A 17-year-old male was led from the home, shirtless and put into a police car.
"We have detained one person who was in the house," Pittman told KCBS. "He is one of the three suspects we were searching for. I can't tell you what his exact role was."
About an hour and 20 minutes later, the Marin County Sheriff's Office tweeted a second suspect was in custody following another tactical raid on a residence on Leafwood Drive between Rowland Boulevard and Sunset Parkway. Novato police had urged people to stay clear of the area and shelter in place.
"While the details of the incident are still developing, we do know that Novato High School students were involved in a shooting in Novato," principal Matt Baldwin and Superintendent Jim Hogeboom wrote in a letter to parents Wednesday night.
It was "an incident involving a small number of people" and "there is no further threat to the community at this point," Pittman said.
School will resume on Tuesday, following a staff development day on Friday and the Memorial Day holiday on Monday, according to a notice on the school website.
