SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The Sacramento Police Department is calling on the public's help to track down a third suspect in connection to the K Street shootout.
The shooting killed six people on Apr. 3 in downtown Sacramento and wounded 12. Two suspects arrested in connection to the shooting were previously identified as brothers Smiley and Dandrae Martin.
On Tuesday, police identified a third suspect as Mtula Payton, 27, who police said is wanted on multiple felony warrants including domestic violence and gun charges. The warrant stems from an incident on Apr. 2, where Payton was accused of hurting a woman at a relative's home. Police said they didn't have contact with Payton at the scene, but documented the incident and sought an arrest warrant
Police believe Payton and the Martin brothers were among at least five shooters in the downtown shooting. None have been charged with homicide. Sgt. Zach Eaton, spokesperson for the department, said Payton was one of the shooters.
“We’re still looking at how many shooters there actually was. There may be more than 5 shooters. We have information at this point to say there was at least 5 shooters,” Sgt. Eaton said.
Currently, police don't know where Payton is, saying they've exhausted their leads. They're calling on the public to try and track him down.
"Anybody with any information related to Mr. Payton’s whereabouts, please call us and let us know because he needs to be taken into custody for his warrants," Sgt. Eaton said.
Anyone with information can call the Sacramento Police Department at (916) 808-5471 or Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at (916) 443-HELP (4357).
“Our goal is to conduct as thorough an investigation as possible, so that the District Attorney has all the information she needs to present cases that will bring justice to the families of the victims and our entire community,” said Sacramento Chief of Police Kathy Lester. “The investigation has moved very quickly in this first week, and it will continue until we can present prosecutors and the public with a complete picture of this terrible crime.”
Sgt. Eaton said the department has also stepped up officer staffing in the downtown area and other areas that are primarily impacted by certain gangs in the city.
WATCH MORE:
WHO HAS BEEN ARRESTED IN THE SHOOTING?
Two brothers, Smiley and Dandrae Martin, are the only two people arrested so far who have been connected by police to the shooting.
A third man was arrested near the scene of the shootout with a gun that police do not think was fired during the melee.
Dandrae Martin, 26, was the first suspect identified by police as a shooter. He was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon but prosecutors have only charged him with a gun possession offense.
Martin, whose gunshot wound was minor, did not enter a plea during a brief hearing in Sacramento Superior Court this week on a charge of being a convict carrying a gun. His lawyer said she wouldn't decide whether to seek bail until prosecutors determine whether to charge him with a more serious crime.
Police for the first time also named Smiley Martin as among the suspected shooters
Smiley Martin, 27, was more seriously injured in the shooting and arrested in the hospital on suspicion of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and possession of a machine gun.
► RELATED: Who is Smiley Martin? The 2nd suspect arrested in connection to Sacramento's deadly mass shooting
Both brothers have felony criminal records that include convictions for violent attacks on women they encouraged to work as prostitutes, according to prosecutors and court records.
Smiley Martin was released from prison under supervision of probation officers in February after serving less than half his 10-year sentence because of voter-approved changes to state law that lessened the punishment for some felonies and provided a chance for earlier release.
A chance at freedom even sooner was rejected in May 2021 after prosecutors wrote to the Parole Board citing Martin's lengthy rap sheet and said he “clearly has little regard for human life and the law.”
WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE THE SHOOTING?
Police have yet to reveal what led to the shootout, but a 15-minute video posted live on Facebook earlier in the night by Smiley Martin showed him brandishing a large handgun, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.
The video posted about four hours before the shooting was believed to be shot in a parking lot in north Sacramento.
Smiley and Dandrae Martin were in the video, along with Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, one of the men who died in the shooting, said the official, who was not authorized to discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.
Investigators believe some of the men involved in the shooting were members of the Crips street gang, the official said. At least one of the victims had been linked by law enforcement to the Bloods gang, according to the official.
In the video, Smiley Martin repeatedly waved a handgun at the camera, saying at one point he was going to a club but didn’t have identification, the official said. He also spoke of an affiliation with the Crips street gang and Hoye-Lucchesi could be heard making veiled threats against someone else, according to the official.
At other points in the video, it appeared the handgun was tucked in Martin’s waistband, the official said.
The video also showed local police officers drive nearby and call out to the group to ask if they had seen a child nearby, the official said. The men responded they hadn’t before the officer drove off.
Sacramento police spokesman Chad Lewis said officers were aware of video that included three of the people involved in the shooting. He said the video showed people waving guns and, at some point, a police cruiser rolled up.
WHAT TYPE OF GUNS WERE FIRED?
Police have yet to reveal what type of weapons were used in the shooting, but they have said more than 100 rounds were fired, which is based on the number of shell casings recovered.
Witnesses provided more than 200 videos and photos and tips that have helped investigators, police said. The explosion of gunfire heard on videos posted online had the ring of semi-automatic or automatic weapons.
A stolen handgun found at the scene had been converted to a weapon capable of automatic gunfire. Police were trying to determine if it was used in the shootout.
Smiley Martin faces a charge of possessing a machine gun, though police have said nothing about whether that weapon was used in the shooting.
The official who spoke on condition of anonymity said police were trying to figure out if the gun Martin was seen sporting in the video was used in the attack.
Police also seized a handgun during a search of three homes after the shooting.
WHO ARE THE VICTIMS?
They were three fathers raising their young children, a sister driving downtown to pick up her older sibling from a night out, a landscaper saving her pay for concert tickets and a woman living on the streets in search of housing.
The Sacramento County coroner identified them as: Johntaya Alexander, 21; Melinda Davis, 57; Yamile Martinez-Andrade, 21; Sergio Harris, 38; Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, 32; and De’vazia Turner, 29.
Of the 12 people wounded, at least two remained hospitalized Friday.
Police have said Smiley Martin will be booked at the Sacramento County jail after he is released from the hospital.
Read More from ABC10:
► Get Updates In Your Inbox: Sign up now for the Daily Blend Newsletter for local headlines, weather, tips and even something to make you smile.
► ABC10 On Demand: Get access to our local news, live programming and weather with the free ABC10 app for Roku and Amazon Fire TV.
WATCH ALSO:
