Autopsy completed on couple in murder/suicide incident in Merced, Fresno

The Merced County Coroner’s Office said it completed autopsies Wednesday on a murder/suicide incident in Merced and Fresno Tuesday.

The victim was shot twice in the head by a handgun, the suspect died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. The identities won’t be available until Thursday and fingerprints can be verified, according to Deputy Tom MacKenzie.

In 2009 the suspect was arrested by the sheriff's office for making terrorist threats against the victim and also for possession of an assault weapon. During the 2009 incident, he had sent text messages stating he was going to kill the woman and also made statements that he was going to take his own life. MacKenzie said in a news release.

When he was arrested then, a loaded 9mm weapon with a 20-round magazine was found inside his residence. It remains unknown whether he was involved in gang activity. At the time had the female victim had one child in common with the suspect. The previous incident occured in the same location as the homicide Tuesday, the 400 block of East Gerard Avenue.

Deputies responded to the Merced scene at 4 p.m. Tuesday and found the victim, an Asian woman, dead from several gunshot wounds, according to MacKenzie.

At the time of this incident, they had two children in common, a 4-year-old and a 1-year-old.

According to a neighbor, the victim had come home from work in her sister's red Honda CR-V about 3 p.m. when the suspect approached her. She was shot twice in the head at close range while she was sitting in the car, the neighbor said.

The neighbor said the victim and the suspect were Hmong. On Tuesday afternoon, friends and family had gathered at the victim's parents' house to provide comfort.

The suspect fled the scene after the shooting, and turned up in Fresno in the area of Sierra Vista and Shields avenues. The suspect informed a family member of what he'd done. Although the family member tried to talk with him, the suspect fatally shot himself in the head, Sheriff Mark Pazin said.

Fresno Police are working in connection with Merced sheriff detectives to piece together details of the case. --Sun-Star Staff