A 17-year-old boy succumbed to his gunshot wounds after a suspected 18-year-old shot him on Sept. 5 in Anaheim, Calif.
Danillo Ashton Arauz was transported to a trauma center to be treated for wounds following the Sunday night shooting. On the morning of Sept. 9, Arauz passed away in the presence of his family.
“My sweet baby brother may you now Rest in Peace. You were only 17 years old and had so much life to live,” Arauz’s brother Blake Goldstein wrote in an Instagram tribute post.
“What happened to you is not fair and I wish I could have done more to protect you. Ashton, you are unlike anybody I’ve ever met. Kind, strong, smart, gentle goofy, way cooler than me, full of joy and showed your love for us in a very special way.”
Goldstein sat by his brother’s side for the last few days of his life as he laid on life support.
“I’m grateful to have had that time to say goodbye, share old stories, read you my poem, hold your hand, kiss your cheek, cry with you, laugh with you,” Goldstein wrote on Instagram. “I know you couldn’t respond, but I believe you could hear me and feel me.”
Zachary Pickrell sits behind bars in the suspension of shooting Arauz at a residential location in the 1700 block of N. Holbrook Street, Anaheim Police spokesperson Sgt. Shane Carringer told The Epoch Times.
When the police arrived at the scene, Pickrell was present and identified himself as a friend of Arauz. Pickrell explained the two were involved in a drive-by shooting. Police chose not to disclose if there were others present.
Pickrell was transported to the Anaheim Detention Facility for attempted murder. He has since been transferred to Orange County Jail where he is being held at $1 million.
According to a GoFundMe page organized by Arauz’s family, he was a student at Esperanza High School who loved to play sports and was the happiest kid.
As of Sept. 10, the GoFundMe account anticipated to cover funeral and unseen costs reached over $20,000 in support.
As the investigation continues, it is expected Pickrell’s charge will change to murder.
