Two hospitalized in early morning shooting

Two women in their 20s were shot early Tuesday morning in Merced, police reported.

Police are currently investigating the shooting and have one suspect in custody, Lt. Jacob Struble reported in a news release.

Police responded to the 1100 block of O Street after hearing gun shots about 1:40 a.m. When an officer arrived on scene, he saw a suspect running with a gun. The suspect, Sergio Uriostegui, a 27-year-old Merced man, was captured with the gun and taken into custody near 11th and N streets.

Another officer found the two women, ages 22 and 26, both from Merced, in the 1100 block of O Street. One victim was taken to Mercy Medical Center in Merced, and the other was taken to a Modesto hospital, Sgt. Robert Solis said.

Solis said so far there have been no independent witnesses in the case.

Jose de Jesus Guzman, 71, has lived on the block where the shooting happened for five year. He and his wife were asleep when they heard the shots, and he told her to get down to avoid being hit.

When he looked out the window, he saw one victim on the ground and two people running away, Guzman said. The incident happened within minutes, he said.

“I’ve never seen something like this happen here,” Guzman said.

Police remained at the scene of the shooting for many hours and are still working on the investigation.

Merced Police are asking anyone with any information regarding this crime to contact Merced Police Department Investigations Sgt. Curt Gorman at 209-385-4706, or the Merced Police Department Tipster Line at 209-385-4725.

Stay with the Sun-Star for more details on this story.

This story was originally published October 18, 2016 at 7:33 AM with the headline "Two hospitalized in early morning shooting."