Vigil set for Saturday for Merced homicide victim

A candlelight memorial is scheduled Saturday in Merced for a young man gunned down late last year.

The family of 24-year-old Ishmael Joseph Escalante is still seeking answers and hoping people will provide police with information about the people responsible for his death.

“I know it’s hard for people to come forward; they might be scared and not want to get involved,” said Deanna Escalante, the victim’s aunt. “But, I’m praying the Lord will give them courage and I’m praying they’ll put themselves in our family’s position. If it was their family, they’d want people to come forward.”

Escalante was shot and killed Dec. 7 at the now-defunct La Hacienda 1 bar and restaurant, 3146 G St. in Merced.

No arrests have been made.

Witnesses told investigators that Escalante was standing outside the bar’s front door when someone shot him. Escalante then ran inside the business and was lying on the floor as the shooter continued to fire at him. The gunman was wearing dark clothing and his face was concealed, Merced police said.

Detective Joe Deliman, the lead investigator in the case, said there are numerous ways for witnesses to provide information, including emails and anonymous phone calls to the department or its tip line, among others.

“They can even talk to a pastor who can pass the information along,” Deliman said Thursday. “I’ll take the information any way I can get it.”

Deanna Escalante described her nephew as a warm, hardworking young man who was deeply committed to his family and had aspirations to study criminology. “He was a very good kid. He wasn’t involved in gangs, that’s something we want people to know, he was never a gang member,” she said. “He was a protector and always tried to take care of his family.”

She said Escalante had been a security guard at the restaurant previously, but left in August.

“He tried to get his job back (in December) and so he could work two jobs and get Christmas presents for the family,” Deanna Escalante said.

The vigil is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Saturday in front of the now-closed restaurant where Escalante died.

This story was originally published March 12, 2015 at 6:10 PM with the headline "Vigil set for Saturday for Merced homicide victim."