Police Arrest Four in Pico Neighborhood Shooting Spree

By Jorge Casuso

May 23 -- Police have arrested four suspects in a string of shootings that have plagued the Pico Neighborhood during the past two weeks, but did not result in any injuries, police said Friday.

Two of the suspects were violating their probation and two were wanted on outstanding warrants, police said. The shootings -- which took place Sunday, Monday and Tuesday and on May 9 -- were gang-related, police said.

“It is believed that these suspects are responsible for four shootings,” said Lt. Frank Fabrega, the police department spokesman. “The motive of the shootings are gang-related at this time.”

On Thursday evening, police arrested Terrence Brown, a black, 23-year-old Santa Monica resident, near his father’s home on the 1800 block of 17th Street, police said. After the arrest, a search warrant was obtained, and police found a firearm and approximately 100 rounds of live ammunition.

Brown was booked for assault with a deadly weapon and outstanding warrants. His bail has been set at $53,000.

Police also arrested Ashia Boldware, a black, 20-year-old resident of Santa Monica police believe was involved with or has information about the shootings.

More searches the following morning led to the arrests of two Hispanic suspects. The first search -- conducted at 8 a.m. on the 1900 block of 17th Street -- led to the arrest of Richard De La Cruz, a 30-year-old Santa Monica resident.

De La Cruz was arrested and charged with probation violation after police recovered evidence linking the suspect to the recent shootings. De La Cruz’ bail has been set at $12,500.

A second search was conducted at the same time on the 1400 block of 11th Street, leading to the arrest of Richard Hernandez, a 19-year-old Santa Monica resident who was arrested for probation violation. Hernandez has no bail.

The four shootings took place in a crime-prone pocket of the Pico Neighborhood that has been the scene of numerous shootings during recent years, some of them gang-related.

The latest shooting took place Tuesday afternoon in an alley behind the 1800 block of 17th Street, within three blocks of where similar incidents were reported on the two previous afternoons.

The incident took place on the same block where two shots were fired on the night of May 9, one of them piercing the window of a bedroom of an affordable housing project where children were asleep.

On Sunday afternoon, two male Hispanics driving southbound on 17th Street near Michigan Avenue approached several subjects standing on the sidewalk and opened fire, police said.

The following afternoon, two suspects described by witnesses as male Blacks in a small vehicle fired several shots on the 1900 block of 20th Street.

Neighborhood activists said the incidents appear to be the result of a racial gang war involving convicts recently released from prison.

Police have stepped up patrols in the area, deploying additional uniformed, as well as plainclothes officers.

“We are currently investigating the shootings, and additional suspects are being sought,” Fabrega said.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Robbery/Homicide Unit of the Santa Monica Police Department at 310 458-8451 or the Watch Commander’s Office at 310 458-8426.