Shootings lead to intense Fresno police chase and apartment break-in, cops say
Two suspects in a series of shootings in central Fresno were arrested early Saturday morning after fleeing from officers, police said.
Fresno Police Lt. Paul Cervantes said officers who made a traffic stop around 12:30 a.m. at Esther and Brooks avenues in central Fresno noticed a person seated in the back seat with a firearm tucked under his lap.
The driver, identified as 40-year-old Benancio Gonzales, placed the car in reverse and drove off at a high rate of speed.
A chase ensued and police determined that the car officers were after matched a vehicle involved in a series of shootings in central Fresno that occurred 38 minutes prior to the traffic stop.
Officers used a blocking maneuver a couple times before successfully stopping the car at Clinton and Marks avenues. A 23-year-old woman, identified as Briana Savala, was arrested but Gonzales and an unidentified passenger with a gun ran into an empty field east of the intersection.
Gonzales, a Bulldog gang member, was caught as he was jumping a cinder block wall at the Westmarc Apartment complex, located just south of Clinton on Marks.
Investigators said the third suspect ran into the apartment complex and broke a sliding glass door to enter an apartment unit.
A man living inside the apartment left his unit and said a man was inside his apartment. He also told officers his roommate was still inside the apartment.
The roommate safely left the apartment after the break-in.
A partial call-out of the SWAT team ensued. SWAT officers secured the apartment but discovered the suspect was not inside. Investigators did find a .38 caliber revolver identified as the gun from the traffic stop.
The Street Violence Bureau is working on this investigation and developing leads on the third person.
Savala was booked into Fresno County Jail on a misdemeanor warrant. Gonzales had a pair of warrants for his arrest and was booked on various charges including felony evading.
No one was struck in the shootings, Cervantes said.
Anyone with information is asked to call detective Nick Romero at 559-313-3668 or email him at Nicolas.Romero@fresno.gov or call CrimeStoppers at 559-498-7867; callers there can remain anonymous.
This story was originally published February 20, 2021 at 8:54 PM.
