Pomona shooting leaves 2 dead outside residence

POMONA, Calif. (KABC) -- A woman and her brother-in-law were shot and killed outside their residence in Pomona Friday, police said.

The shooting occurred on the 1000 block of East Lexington Avenue around 11:45 p.m. Bennie Porter, 53, and Alexander Lafferal, 59, had just returned from the store and were sitting outside on the patio to escape the heat, family members said.

Investigators say a suspect or suspects walked up to the front of the residence and began shooting. Several family members were inside when the shots were fired.

"When we heard the shots, we thought it was firecrackers," Porter's mother Lula Porter said. "It was 10 or 12 shots."

Lafferal died at the scene and Bennie Porter was transported to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center, where she was later pronounced dead.

A suspect description was not immediately available.

The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact Pomona Police Department Detectives Machado or Iwig at (909) 620-2085.

CORRECTION: We initially reported the victims were a couple. Eyewitness News has since learned the man and the woman were not married or involved in a relationship.