ESCALON, Calif. — After months of reported shootings near Escalon, San Joaquin County Sheriff's deputies finally arrested a man who had been "randomly firing a shotgun at passing motorists" on Tuesday, Feb. 9.
San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office said they had been getting multiple calls about these shootings, but none of the victims saw the shooter or the car they were driving. All had damage to their cars.
On Feb. 9, early in the morning, two victims of these shootings were able to identify the suspect's car as a white sedan, according to the sheriff's office.
With this information, and help from the Riverbank Police Department, deputies were able to locate and arrest the person who was linked to the car in Riverbank.
Officials identified the suspect as 39-year-old Javier Rivera. They found "a pistol-sized, 12-gauge, double-barrel shotgun and a sawed-off pump-action shotgun" when they arrested Rivera and he admitted to the shootings on Feb. 9, according to the sheriff's office.
Rivera said he randomly chose all the victims he shot at and is facing multiple felony charges, including attempted murder, shooting at occupied vehicles, and being a felon in possession of a firearm, the sheriff's office said.
The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office is still investigating these shootings. They are asking anyone with information on this investigation or who has been a victim of these types of crimes to call the sheriff's office.
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