Armed invaders stormed a home in Central California and killed six people, including a six-month-old baby and a teenage mother, in what police said they believe was a drug gang-related attack.
According to the Tulare County Sheriff’s office, deputies responded to a call about shots fired at a home in Goshen, California at about 3:30 am local time and arrived at the home about 30 minutes later.
Sheriff Mike Boudreaux said that one of the responding officers found the baby cradled in her mother’s arms in a ditch near the home. Both the mother and baby had gunshot wounds to the head.
Officers also found one victim in the doorway, and three more bodies inside the home, including that of an older woman. Sheriff Boudreaux said that all were dead except for a man who passed away at the hospital.
The Sheriff said that two women survived the deadly attack by hiding in a trailer nearby. At a news conference, Sheriff Boudreaux told reporters that they did not believe the attack was random. He said the attack appeared to be deeply personal and that the shooters were sending a message.
Police announced two males were suspects in the shooting and that the crime was drug and gang-related.
The Sheriff revealed that deputies had executed a search warrant at the house the week before and found methamphetamine, guns, and weed, which they seized. He told reporters he believed the shooting was connected to that seizure and had to do with a drug cartel.
The mother and child were identified by the woman’s father, Samuel Pina. He said that the mother, Alissa Parraz, and the infant, Nycholas Nolan Parraz, were among the people killed in the shooting attack.
According to the Sheriff, how the shootings were conducted suggested that the shooters were experienced, not just low-end gang members. Most of the victims, including the older woman police found in a bed, had been shot in the head.
The two women who survived the attack told the police that people in the house had seen the shooters sneaking into the house on surveillance cameras, but it was too late for them to do anything.
Tulare County Supervisor Eddie Valero released a statement saying it was the worst nightmare for every Goshen resident. Valero condemned the attack saying that the senseless acts of violence, especially with children, babies, and young adults, have no place in the community.
Authorities in Tulare County have made several arrests related to drug trafficking in recent years. Officers found 50 pounds of methamphetamine in a car during a traffic stop in 2020. The traffic stop led officers to find three methamphetamine labs, two in one home and one in another.
According to the sheriff’s office, the investigation led them to recover methamphetamine worth more than $1.5 million.
Last year, the drug trafficking task force and the drug enforcement administration arrested four people suspected of being involved in a drug operation to sell methamphetamine.
Speaking about the drug traffic in the community, Supervisor Valero said that drugs were a huge concern, just like in many other parts of the country.