Officials in Sacramento County are looking into a gun violence incident that broke out Saturday evening at Howe Community Park in the Arden-Arcade area just as officers were dissolving a large unsanctioned party of a crowd of several hundred.
Background
Deputies were first dispatched to the Arden-Arcade park at approximately 6:30 PM after getting calls of persons possibly in possession of concealed weapons. Shortly after, a follow-up call was made describing a potential altercation happening near the park.
Aerial units conducted an aerial sweep but came back with no confirmation of a fight. Despite this, it became clear that a crowd of several hundred had packed into the park without any permit or approval.
When the Shots Rang Out
Deputies worked to disperse the crowd by surrounding the park and broadcasting over loudspeakers telling the hundreds present to vacate the area. Nearly 15 minutes were allowed for the gathering to break up.
At the height of the dispersal effort that an estimated 20 to 25 shots were fired. The sudden gunfire sent the crowd running in all directions. Officers swiftly started searching for victims.
Four Gunshot Victims
In total, four gunshot victims were found to have been shot. Those injured — including a female and three males each apparently in their mid to late twenties — were rushed to hospitals in the Sacramento area. Doctors and nurses confirmed that two were treated for serious injuries, one had moderate injuries, and one suffered minor injuries. Thankfully, all four were in stable condition.
Sacramento Metro Fire arrived on scene and provided medical assistance shooting victims at the scene.
Physical Evidence
The center of the incident seemed to have occurred adjacent to the Cottage Way side of the park near the Home Depot at the 2200 Howe Avenue block. Crime scene investigators found more spent casings on the Cottage Way roadway. Bullet holes were identified in the wrought iron perimeter fencing adjacent to the nearby Home Depot. These discoveries pointed to that a second shooter had been sending Sacramento park shooting 2026 rounds south from the Cottage Way area toward the Home Depot store. The store itself was placed on lockdown for a period of time. Crime scene technicians and detectives stayed at the location well into the night.
Suspect Information
Information relayed over police scanner frequencies revealed that a suspect Kia had been detained in nearby Solano County. Four suspects were held for questioning. Law enforcement units were en route to collect those detained to collect the individuals for questioning. Video that was reviewed confirmed that there were two gunmen.