2 people have been arrested in the suspected road rage shooting death of a 6-year-old boy in California
Two people were arrested in a fatal suspected road rage shooting in Orange County, California, that killed a 6-year-old boy last month.
Aiden Leos was sitting in a booster seat as his mother drove him to kindergarten on a California highway when he was shot May 21, CNN previously reported. He died at the hospital.
“While these arrests will not ease the pain of a mother’s loss, my hope is for the Leos family to have some peace of mind and to rest assured the CHP will work with the Orange County District Attorney to bring justice for Aiden,” CHP Commissioner Amanda Ray said in the release.
The suspects were identified as Marcus Anthony Eriz, 24, and Wynne Lee, 23, in a news release from the California Highway Patrol issued Sunday night.
Criminal charges will be filed by Tuesday morning against the pair, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer announced in a news conference.
The suspects were arrested at their home in Costa Mesa, and “are expected to be charged with murder,” the CHP said in the news release.
According to the Orange County Jail roster, Eriz and Lee are being held on a $1 million bond.
CNN has not yet determined whether they have legal representation.
Arrest made after ‘intense manhunt’
Aiden’s sister Alexis Cloonan had made an emotional plea for people to help identify her brother’s killer.
“Please help us find the people that did this to my little brother. He’s only 6 and he was so sweet,” Cloonan said through tears after the shooting.
“There was road rage on the freeway and someone pulled out a gun and shot my little brother in the stomach,” she told reporters. “He said, ‘Mommy my tummy hurts,’ so she went and she picked him up and he was bleeding on her. She had blood on her clothes.”
Police said in the release announcing the arrests that the shooting occurred after a “perceived unsafe lane change.”
Eriz and Lee were arrested in the city of Costa Mesa on Sunday after investigators conducted an intensive manhunt, California Highway Patrol Border Division Assistant Chief Donald Goodbrand said.
The gun and vehicle believed to have been used in the shooting were also recovered at another location, Goodbrand added.
Spitzer said the District Attorney’s Office will file charges by 10 a.m. PT Tuesday. An arraignment for the suspects is expected later in the day in Orange County Superior Court.
“We will get justice for him,” said Spitzer. “This is Orange County, California. When you commit a crime in our county, you’re going to be held responsible to the fullest extent of the law.”
While Sptizer did not discuss the charges, he said shooting into an occupied vehicle carries a maximum of seven years in state prison. In Orange County, where sentencing enhancements may be filed, the suspects can be sentenced from 25 years to life in prison.
‘Indescribable outpouring of concern’
A reward of more than $500,000 was offered for any information leading to an arrest in the case. Authorities at the news conference Monday declined to discuss the reward money.
CHP Border Division Chief Omar Watson thanked the community for its “‘indescribable outpouring of concern and hundreds of tips that helped investigators find the killers,” the release said.
“The Department has been in regular contact with the victim’s family and I assure you they, like us, are committed to seeing justice served,” he added.
CNN Affiliate KCAL spoke with community members following the arrest Sunday at a memorial site for the young boy.
“Every time I pass the freeway, I want to cry,” Jessie Palomo told the affiliate. She and her children lit candles at the memorial. “This is now a place that everyone knows about, sadly, in a sad, tragic way. But as a community, we’ve always got to stand together.”
Community member Cheryl Gish told KCAL the arrest has brought some justice but won’t bring Aiden back.
She and her husband also visited the memorial site for Aiden on an overpass above the 55 Freeway where he lost his life, the affiliate reported.
“I’m thankful that they have somebody in custody,” Gish said, according to KCAL. “It doesn’t bring the little boy back, little Aiden’s gone, but I’m so thankful some justice will be served.”
