EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – A shooting that left two people injured at a house party in East El Paso over Labor Day weekend started with an early-morning fight, according to court documents obtained by KTSM.
One of the people who was arrested later tried to hide from police at an Eastside bar and allegedly resisted arrest inside the bar.
Police have arrested Luis Ruiz, 19, and Alan Villanueva, 18, in connection with a shooting at a party along the 10900 block of Gary Player Drive in the early morning hours of Sept. 3. Two people were injured in the shooting.
Ruiz, of Horizon City, has been charged with evading arrest or detention and a second charge of resisting arrest, search or transport. Villanueva, of El Paso, has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
According to court documents, when police arrived at the house party at about 1:30 a.m. on Sept. 3, they found one victim with multiple gunshot wounds who was transported to the hospital by emergency medical personnel and another victim who was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound by an unknown subject.
Investigators were able to find surveillance footage of the backyard where the house party took place. Upon review of the footage, investigators saw a large group of people who had gathered for a party. According to court documents, an altercation happened and multiple gunshots were fired. A crowd of people were seen fleeing the area after the shooting.
According to court documents, multiple bullet casings were found at the scene. Police also found a 9mm Ruger handgun which was thrown into the desert area directly behind the residence where the party took place.
According to court documents, the suspected shooter, now identified as Villanueva, was seen wearing a ski mask and holding a gun at the time of the shooting. He was also seen arriving with a group of other people, including one of the gunshot victims.
Police were able to identify Villanueva based on surveillance footage and independent witness statements, according to court documents.
Investigators were able to match a vehicle that was used to drop one of the gunshot victims off at a local hospital and tied that to Villanueva, who had a history of traffic citations associated with that vehicle. Court documents also show that vehicle was registered to Villanueva’s mother.
In a separate arrest, Ruiz was arrested after he allegedly tried to hide in an Eastside bar and made a police officer drag him out by force, according to court documents.
Shortly before 2 a.m. on the night of the shooting, police saw a vehicle that matched the description of one that may have been used in the shooting at the Gary Player house party and another shooting that happened earlier that night.
Police tracked the car to the 1500 block of Lee Trevino.
According to court documents, Ruiz saw a marked patrol car and officer and began to run toward the Coco Bar. He tried to hide between cars and then in the patio area of the bar. Ruiz then hopped the fence separating the patio from the main bar area, according to court documents.
A police officer followed Ruiz into the bar and told him to “get on the (expletive) ground.”
Ruiz allegedly ignored commands and continued to push his way into the crowd, continuously looking back at the police officer.
Ruiz then hid near the bar counter. The officer initially approached Ruiz with his gun drawn as the suspect was thought to “possibly be armed with the weapon used in the shooting.”
The officer holstered his gun and grabbed Ruiz, who continued to resist, according to court documents. The officer was eventually able to use “overpowering force” by grabbing Ruiz by the collarbone area and by the pants and turning him onto his stomach.
During the struggle, the police officer cut his pinky finger.
According to court documents, Ruiz was “then dragged out of the crowd inside the bar” after he refused to walk out on his own accord. Once outside, Ruiz agreed to walk. The suspect was evaluated by fire medical personnel and was transported to a local hospital with unknown injuries. He was later arrested after he was medically cleared.
Read: Read More