An out-of-the-blue fatal shooting incident happened on the 1400 block of South Cypress Street, Santa Anna, California on December 4, 2022.
Maria Del Refugio Mora, a 36-year-old married mother of three children, was leaving a convenience store when gunshots broke out, as her husband and their youngest child was leaving a neighboring pizza business.
Police said that the occupants of a white automobile leapt out and started shooting at two teenage boys, the intended targets, who were walking on the street.
One of the shots fired at the teens wounded the mother, Mora, in the upper chest as she crossed the parking lot to meet her family, as the targeted teens fled the scene.
During a news appearance, the husband said he had seen his wife smiling at him right before hearing her scream. The shooting happened in front of the couple’s three-year-old child.
After being transferred to a hospital, Mora passed away five days later. The two teenagers who were supposedly the attack’s targets escaped unharmed.
Detectives were able to pin down the getaway car used in the crime, a white Toyota Camry, according to police, who stated in a statement that this helped identify the suspects.
Police Chief David Valentin said, “The accidental death of an innocent bystander, a mother of three, by a gang-related gunshot should never happen in our neighborhoods, especially during the holiday season.”
According to the Santa Ana Police Department, Mark Remmers, 19, and Brooke De La Cruz, 24, both from Orange, were detained by police on the suspicion of murder on December 4.
Police Chief Valentin said, “Our sincere sympathies are sent to the victim’s family, especially to her three children, who will have to celebrate this and all other holidays without a mother.”
Remmers, a reputed gang member, is purportedly the gunman, with De La Cruz allegedly operating the getaway car, according to Chief Valentin.
Remmers was out on bond for several felony weapons charges at the time of the incident, according to court documents. Police are still searching for two more suspects who are said to have been in the car when the incident occurred.