Authorities identify 18-year-old victim of deadly shooting near Walmart in Merced

Authorities have identified the victim of a deadly shooting in Merced on Monday evening as 18-year-old Dominick Hernandez of Atwater, according to a Merced Police Department news release.

Officers responded to the Walmart parking lot in the 3000 block of Loughborough Drive for multiple reports of a shooting, police said. Officers located Hernandez suffering from a gunshot wound and rendered medical aid. He was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to authorities.

Merced police detectives spoke with several witnesses and are actively working the case including searching for any video surveillance from the area. This is the police department’s eighth recorded homicide in the city this year, one of which involved a mother and her unborn child.

Police ask anyone with information regarding the incident to contact Detective Radke at 209-769-8779 or Detective Haygood at 209-769-8670.

Anonymous tips can be reported to police by calling 209-385-4725. Some crimes can be reported through the Merced Police Department website.

Crimes can also be reported to authorities anonymously through the Merced Area Crime Stoppers website.

According to GoFundMe spokesperson Nicole Santos, a GoFundMe page has been created help Hernandez’s family with memorial expenses.

This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 4:06 PM.