Man shot to death in parking lot identified by Fresno police. Two accused of slaying
Police on Monday identified the 40-year-old man who was killed during the weekend when he was shot outside a southwest Fresno smoke shop.
He was Adavier Thomas of Fresno, according to investigators.
Thomas was outside Zacks Smoke Shop on California Avenue and Martin Luther King Boulevard about 5:20 p.m. Sunday when he was shot by what police have said they believe to be two people.
Multiple shots were fired, police said.
He later died at Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno, police said.
Police initially responded to the parking lot because someone was reportedly brandishing a gun. Officers heard the shots being fired, police said, and saw someone driving away from the area.
Officers pursued the until they were in position to perform a maneuver to stop the fleeing car about a mile away at Church and Walnut avenues, police said.
Two people in the vehicle — 39-year-old Faheem Muhammad and 33-year-old Malcolm McCoy —were detained without further incident, according to authorities.
Officers were able to identify the men as the shooters using surveillance video, police said.
It remained unclear if the man who was shot was an employee or a customer at the store. The business was open at the time of the shooting.
Police said a gun was discarded during the pursuit. There may have been a second gun, but police said they had not obtained it immediately after the chase.
Anyone with information is asked to by police to call at 559-621-7000. Anyone can remain anonymous by calling contact Crime Stoppers at 559-498-7867.
