The Santa Maria Police Department is investigating a double shooting on the evening of Dec. 26 that left two people dead.
According to SMPD Sgt. Jesus Valle, officers were dispatched to the area of Jewel and Via Rubio streets to investigate a report of gunshots at 7 p.m.
When they arrived, the officers found two people suffering from gunshot wounds. The victims were transported to Marian Regional Medical Center where they later died.
Police identified the victims as 42-year-old Ramiro Ceja Gonzales and 26-year-old Manuel Manzano-Mata, both residents of Santa Maria.
Information surrounding the circumstances of the shootings is scarce, and police haven’t released many details, including whether the shootings were gang related.
According to some nearby residents, both Gonzales and Manzano-Mata were found on the sidewalk near the street corner.
Nearly two hours after the shooting was reported, they said, the scene was completely back to normal, as if no shooting had occurred. All that remains are small pieces of broken car-window glass strewn across the pavement.
One older Latino woman who did not want to be identified said Gonzales had a family and didn’t understand why someone wanted to shoot him. The shootings left her worried that they occurred so close to her home.
The two shootings mark Santa Maria’s 12th and 13th homicides of 2015.
The investigation is ongoing. No arrests have been made and no suspects have been identified. The SMPD encourages anyone with information to call 928-3781, Ext. 2277.
This article appears in Dec 31, 2015 – Jan 7, 2016.