Authorities arrested two men on March 16, each arrest stemming from one of two separate deaths in Santa Maria that occurred within hours of each other, according to the Santa Maria Police Department.
Ismael Lares, 34, was arrested early that morning after he allegedly struck a man with his truck in the parking lot of Louie B’s bar. The victim later died from his injuries, police said.
Lares was booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail on suspicion of manslaughter, felony hit and run, and driving under the influence.
Lares’ passenger, Adrian Avila, was also arrested and booked into jail on an unrelated felony warrant, police said.
A little more than three hours later, police responded to reports of shots fired at the La Vista apartment complex on Western and Knudsen in Santa Maria. Police found a man who was shot and later died from his wound.
That evening, SMPD detectives arrested Santa Maria resident Wilfredo Rodriguez Chicas, 27, in connection with the shooting at La Vista. Chicas was booked into Santa Barbara County jail and is being held on $1 million bail.
Friends, family members, and neighbors of the shooting victim gathered at the scene of the crime that afternoon. A relative identified the victim as Alejandro Diaz Alvarez.
Alejandro Ocampo Diaz said his uncle was shot in the back outside of his apartment while he prepared his car for the morning commute to work. Ocampo Diaz said his uncle was in his late 30s and came to Santa Maria from the Mexican state of Guerrero when he was 16 years old.
Diaz was married with three children and was dedicated to his family, his nephew said.
“He was a hard working man, and he worked for his family,” Ocampo Diaz said about his uncle. “This is not fair that this had to happen.”
This article appears in Mar 19-26, 2015.