A 21-year-old man is in the Canyon County Jail, charged with aggravated assault in connection with a shooting that took place in a Nampa business parking lot Tuesday night.
About 10 p.m., officers responded to the parking lot of a large retail store in the 5800 block of East Franklin Road, Nampa, for a report of shots fired.
Many officers were already in the area for the God and Country Festival at the nearby Idaho Center. When they arrived on the scene, witnesses began pointing out a suspect and telling officers what they had witnessed.
“During the course of the investigation, officers were directed to an adult male, identified as 21-year-old Nampa resident, Ezri Garcia,” said Nampa Police Sgt. Curt Shankel.
“Witnesses had identified him as one of the individuals involved in the shooting in the parking lot of the business. Officers did locate a small caliber handgun with Garcia. (They also) were able to ascertain that another individual was involved. That subject has been described as a Hispanic male, 5’7” to 5’8” with a small build and wearing a black shirt. He was last seen in a dark-colored vehicle.”
Prior to the shooting, witnesses told police Garcia and the other subject had been in a physical altercation near the front of the store. The altercation apparently escalated when both parties fired their weapons at each other.
Shankel said Garcia had an injury to his head when officers made contact, but it is not known how the injury occurred. “It is not known if the other subject was injured in the altercation. Officers found multiple shell casings on the ground from two different caliber weapons,” Shanekl stated.
Witnesses said a person in a dark-colored vehicle was last seen traveling northbound through the parking lot as he was fleeing the scene.
“When officers arrived on scene they were also directed to a juvenile female, in an adjacent parking lot, who had been struck by a bullet,” Shankel said.
The girl sustained a gunshot wound to her shoulder. She was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. Police said she was not involved in the altercation and was a bystander waiting for fireworks.
“This is a very unfortunate event to take place where families are gathered for a fun event,” Shankel said. “We are continuing to investigate this shooting and looking for the other suspect involved.”
