Investigation into shooting homicide of 15-year-old boy continues, say Merced police

The person who shot a 15-year-old boy to death this week remains at large, according to Merced police.

Capt. Jay Struble told the Sun-Star that investigators are continuing to canvass the downtown Merced neighborhood and look for video surveillance.

“At this time, it appears this is an isolated incident,” Struble said of the shooting, which happened late Tuesday evening.

Police have not released the victim’s name. Struble said police are investigating the shooting as a gang-related crime, and it’s unknown if the juvenile knew the shooter.

Officers responded to a shots fired call shortly after 11 p.m. Tuesday and located the victim lying in an alley in the 200 block of West 18th Street, according to police.

According to police about four to seven juveniles were reportedly congregating and drinking alcohol outside an apartment building on Tuesday, April 7, when an unknown suspect or suspects, walked up and started shooting.

Life saving efforts were performed but the victim succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.

Police said none of the other juveniles in the group were struck by the gunfire.

Anyone in the with information about the shooting can contact the Merced Police Department Tipster Line at (209) 385-4725.

The public can also send information via anonymous text messages to the police department by dialing “TIP411” (847411) and including the word “Comvip” as the “keyword” in the text message.

This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 7:01 PM.