![]() Police believe he and the gunman are rival taggers.īack in March of this year - 18-year-old Antonio Lopez was also shot and killed in East Central Fresno under the same circumstances.Ĭhief Dyer insists his department is using a proactive approach in dealing with the problem. Several bullets struck Mendez, killing him. Investigators say Mendez was walking home from the store with a 15-year-old friend when a car drove by and someone inside started shooting. Candles and mementos now rest where 21-year-old Jairo Mendez was killed. The latest incident happened Tuesday night in East Central Fresno. "Of the 40 tagger related shootings we've had in our city, 24 of them have been drive-by shootings, so these individuals are taking it to a new level." 13 of those have occurred within the past two months. This year, there have been 40 shootings in the city of Fresno involving taggers. "These are no longer simply tagging crews. Police Chief Jerry Dyer says many of the people responsible for this form of vandalism are taking a much more violent approach. But, Chief Jerry Dyer says the issue has escalated so much, his department is now trying to validate taggers as gang members.įrom walls and fences to city owned property, graffiti in Fresno is hard to miss. Tuesday night's shooting involved an ongoing feud between two groups of graffiti vandals.ĭealing with taggers is nothing new for the city. ![]() Tuesday night, a 21-year-old man was murdered in what police are now calling a "tagger's dispute." And police say there have been several similar shootings over the past month alone. Fresno Police have long battled gangs, but now they're setting their sights on another growing threat - groups of vandals called "tagging crews."
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |