What we know about Stockton shooting: Reward jumps as new information about victims is revealed

Authorities continue to implore the public to provide information about the Stockton mass shooting that left four people dead — three of them children — and injured more than a dozen others Saturday.

While there have been some new developments in the case, including a new reward, authorities still don’t have any suspects.

Here’s what we know as of Wednesday:

New $50,000 reward

The FBI announced it was offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of those responsible for the attack. On Sunday, Mayor Christina Fugazi announced she was matching a Crime Stoppers reward for $10,000. Councilwoman Mariela Ponce offered a $5,000 contribution, for a total reward from that organization of $25,000.

Federal officials said any tips, photos or video related to the rampage can be submitted confidentially to an FBI website dedicated to the Stockton shooting. They said information can also be submitted anonymously to Stockton’s Crime Stoppers at (209) 946-0600. San Joaquin County sheriff’s officials said calls can be made to the office’s non-emergency line, at (209) 468-4400.

Sheriff Patrick Withrow said no suspects have been taken into custody in connection with the attack he described as “targeted.”

Outside assistance

In addition to the FBI’s assistance in the case, Attorney General Rob Bonta said Tuesday his office had reached out to San Joaquin County officials to offer its support.

At a Giving Tuesday event in Sacramento, the state’s top cop said that currently, local law enforcement has not taken him up on that offer.

“I know that they are hard at work, chasing down clues and doing what they do best, helping hold those accountable who harmed our communities,” Bonto told KCRA, adding that this kind of tragedy is “never normal and never acceptable.”

Mayor Christina Fugazi told CBS News that she wanted federal resources brought in.

“We need more,” Fugazi said in a videotaped interview with the news outlet, where she continued to assert that the shooting was gang-related.

“I am calling on the full power of the federal government not only to stop crime but also to give our community the tools to prevent crime before it starts,” Fugazi said in a statement.

But sheriff’s officials said they are already working with federal agencies, including the Department of Justice. And spokesperson Heather Brent said as the lead agency on the case, the Sheriff’s Office is not “relying on assumptions and opinions that are posted on social media.”

“Until we have 100% factual information that this was gang violence, we’re not going to say that,” Brent added.

Earlier in the week, Withrow thanked a dozen outside agencies for their “support and teamwork,” including the ATF, the California Highway Patrol and nearby police departments from Manteca, Tracy and Lathrop.

A neighborhood scarred

In the area of north Stockton around Lucile Avenue, some neighbors remember violent incidents — past shootings in a nearby park, and an infamous bank robbery. But those cases were years ago. Since then, the stretch of strip mall shops and suburban homes had felt mostly peaceful. Crime statistics suggested the same thing.

That feeling changed Saturday night, many said. A shooting ripped through a family gathering of more than 100 people. It left more than a dozen wounded and four dead. 

As the crime scene tape came down and the investigation continued, some residents were left wondering why the violence had returned, and how it could change their community.

Those killed, wounded

The shooting claimed the lives of four young victims — two 8-year-old girls, a 14-year-old boy and a 21-year-old man. All had been attending a birthday party for a 2-year-old girl at an event space in north Stockton.

Initially, officials reported that 10 people had been wounded by gunfire. Within days, however, that count rose to 13, as authorities said they identified more people who sought treatment at local hospitals. While many of those who were initially hospitalized have since been released, at least one remained in critical condition, sheriff’s spokesperson Heather Brent said Tuesday.

Although the Sheriff’s Office and the San Joaquin County Medical Examiner’s Office have refused to identify any victims, family and friends have come forward to publicly grieve their lost loved ones.

Central Valley Hornets youth basketball league Director Mike Estrada said Tuesday that one of his players, 14-year-old Amari Peterson, of Modesto, was among the dead.

“He had so much to offer the world,” Estrada said of the two-sport athlete. He was a complete player, Estrada added: “a fantastic kid, always well-mannered, never in trouble.” 

Amari had not planned to attend the party Saturday night. His father, Patrick Peterson, said Amari wanted to stay home and shoot hoops. Ultimately, he decided to join his family for the fateful celebration.

Aresha Mosley, who identified herself as Amari’s godmother and aunt, said in a post for a GoFundMe page she created for the family that Amari was “in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Among the youngest of the victims was Maya Lupian, a Stockton third-grader. The 8-year-old’s death was confirmed by her school, Aspire APEX Academy.

Maya’s sister, Yesenia Lupian, said the young girl “loved to dance, sing and draw.”

Lupian called the child “the light in everyone’s life, the sweetest soul.”

In a post on a GoFundMe account created to raise money for the Lupian family, Yesenia said Maya would have turned 9 next week.

Maya’s cousin Journey Rose Reotutar Guerrero, another 8-year-old, also was killed in the shooting.

Journey Rose was a “joyful” and a “bright-minded child,” her cousin Joseph Guerrero of Stockton told Stocktonia.

“She would just bring smiles to your face … bring light to your day,” he said of the Stockton Unified School District third-grader.

The Stockton Unified School District had earlier said one of its students was among the shooting victims.

SUSD Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez said in a statement, “We carry Journey’s family in our hearts as we grieve alongside them.”

SUSD plans to have counselors, psychologists and mental health clinicians available at all 55 campuses to support students and staff.

“Our students, staff, and families deserve safety, healing, and support, and we will do everything in our power to ensure they have it,” Stockton Unified Board President Kennetha Stevens said.

The oldest of those shot to death was 21-year-old Susano Archuleta, according to news reports.

Emmanuel Lopez said his brother, Archuleta, was shot in the neck, the Los Angeles Times reported. Patricia Flores, an aunt, told CBS News that Archuleta was “a good kid and he went to the celebration for a friend of his.”

Funeral costs

International Afrobeats star Burna Boy has offered to pay for the funerals of the children who were gunned down.

Stockton Vice Mayor Jason Lee announced Burna Boy’s offer in a Facebook post. Lee — who survived being shot in Stockton and later lost his brother to gun violence — said the deaths have “shaken (him) in a way that’s hard to put into words.” 

Lee said a music manager connected him with Burna Boy after hearing about the death of Amari, which set in motion the offer to support the grieving families.

“Burna didn’t know these families, but when he heard what happened, he stepped up with compassion and offered to cover the funeral costs for all the kids we lost,” Lee said, calling the gesture a meaningful relief for parents facing “the unimaginable.”

Family’s account of the attack

Many of the victims were related to the 2-year-old birthday girl or her mother, Patrice Williams, who said two of those killed were nieces of her baby’s father.

Williams said everyone was gathering around for the cake-cutting when the shooting began. She didn’t realize what was happening in the moment.

“I actually thought it was my balloons popping,” she said of the decorations inside the event space. “And it was gunshots.”

Authorities say shots were fired both inside and outside the venue. Bullet holes could be seen on the exterior of the Monkey Space building at 1943 Lucile Avenue.

Teresa Spivey, the birthday girl’s great-grandmother, said she pushed over a table to use as a shield, and worked to get as many children as possible to safety in a nearby room.

But she couldn’t save everyone.

“All I could see was babies falling to the ground,” Spivey said.

“And blood was everywhere.”

Stocktonia staff writers Aaron Leathley, Shaylee Navarro and Cassie Dickman and contributor Andrea Baltodano contributed to this report.