Two arrested in suspected Merced gang shooting

A seven-month investigation by Merced police ended Friday with two suspected gang members in custody in connection with a drive-by shooting last June.

Francisco Laureano Arciaga, 18, of Merced was the alleged driver and shooter June 10 when three suspected gang members were shot in the area of the 500 block of M Street. Three men, ages 22, 29 and 43, were shot but survived their injuries, Merced police Lt. Matt Williams said in an interview Friday.

Police also arrested Salvador Madrigal, 21, of Delhi as another suspect in the attack. Williams said Madrigal owned the vehicle allegedly used in the attack and helped develop the plan beforehand. “He was inside the vehicle at the time but was not a shooter,” Williams said.

Arciaga was already in custody Friday when he was arrested again in the shooting case, Merced police said in a news release.

According to Merced Superior Court records, Friday’s arrest marks at least the third gang-related shooting from 2014 in which Arciaga has been named as a suspect. He has also been charged with shooting a woman in the leg Oct. 25 outside a Canal Street bar. Arciaga, additionally, has been charged with shooting a home Nov. 11 in the 1600 block of Cypress Way. He has pleaded not guilty in both cases.

Police on Friday acknowledged that during the investigation of the Canal Street shooting, officers had arrested Jaime Villanueva, 20, as a suspect. However, he was later released after detectives determined he wasn’t involved in the crime. Although Villanueva was arrested, he was never charged in connection with the case, the Merced County District Attorney’s Office confirmed.

Arciaga is the prime suspect in all three shootings, including the June 10 shooting for which he was rearrested Friday. “He and (Madrigal) went hunting for (rivals), and those three victims were who they found,” Williams said.

Williams praised the work of the officers involved, the Merced Gang Violence Suppression Unit and Detective Joseph Deliman, the lead investigator in the case. Williams said he could not comment specifically on the evidence that led to the breakthrough in the case.

“I can say that the collaboration between the detectives, the gang unit and (Deliman) was really important in this case,” Williams said. “In these types of gang cases, it’s very difficult to get cooperation from witness and even from victims. The officers all did a really good job.”

Both men remained in custody Friday evening at the Merced County jail. Arciaga’s bail was set at $750,000, while Madrigal’s bail was listed as $625,000, according to booking records.

This story was originally published February 6, 2015 at 6:01 PM with the headline "Two arrested in suspected Merced gang shooting."