34-year-old Jesse Leal Rodriguez of Anaheim is in jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, although investigators with the Riverside County District Attorney's office are still reviewing the case.
[Ads /]
Earlier reports indicated possibly two additional shootings after Rodriguez was arrested. But authorities have since indicated to Eyewitness News that one of those incidents appears to have happened much earlier in the evening and was simply reported to police after the arrest. The other incident was likely just a rock into a windshield.
Rodriguez was taken into custody Tuesday evening near the 91 Freeway and Tyler Street, after Riverside police stopped him for questioning because his red Chevy Trailblazer matched the description of the suspect vehicle in more shootings earlier that night on the 91 Freeway.
RELATED: Arrest made in string of BB gun shootings on 91 Freeway
Authorities arrest man in string of BB gun shootings on 91 Freeway
"We're very fortunate that up until this point, it didn't end in someone getting hurt. This definitely had the potential for it," said CHP Officer Ramon Duran. "We're glad that someone is in custody for this recent string of BB gun shootings."
It's unclear to authorities if Rodriguez is responsible for other shootings, if he has an accomplice or if there are multiple copycats shooting out windows. But at this point, Rodriguez is the only suspect under arrest.
"Further investigation is actively being conducted to confirm if this individual is the suspect associated with the recent series of BB gun incidents that have been occurring in Riverside, Orange, and Los Angeles counties the last two months," CHP said in a news release.
[Ads /]
Rodriguez's criminal history included convictions for carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in public and participating in criminal street gang activity. He was sentenced to 32 months in state prison in April 2013. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said he was paroled in January 2015 after serving his full term, per law. He was discharged from parole in January 2018.
In total, more than 100 pellet gun shootings have been reported along the 91 Freeway over the past month, stretching from Riverside into L.A. County. No serious injuries have occurred during the string of incidents.
CHP has repeatedly said that BB gun shootings do happen along Southern California freeways - although 100-plus incidents in the span of a month is unusual.
There were no reported freeway shootings on Thursday.