Murder Suspect's Father Speaks About Son's Troubled Past

23-year-old Richard Gunner was caught after an hours-long search in Santee Saturday night, arrested for the murder of a 21-year-old who was gunned down in front of his house Saturday morning. Gunner’s father told NBC 7 drugs spun his son out of control. "He's my kid. I love him and it sucks," said Mark Gunner.

Mark Gunner adopted his son, Ricky at a young age. He said there were problems from the very beginning. "He was a drug baby and he is bad; and there's certain things that he couldn't control," said Gunner. He told NBC 7 his son has already served time in prison for carjacking. "He went in two weeks after his 18th birthday. You're in there for five years, really high testosterone for the guy, so when he got out he went nuts," explained Gunner.

Gunner noticed Ricky's drug use got worse after his stint in jail. "I think when he was in prison he may have developed a drug habit. And I think it was far more serious than I knew," he said. Gunner never thought it would escalate to murder. Early Saturday morning, 21-year-old Brandon Deguzman was found shot to death right outside his home. Ricky Gunner was named a person of interest. After hours of searching around Santee, detectives took him into custody on a parole violation. After further investigation, they arrested Gunner for the death of Deguzman; the two seen together right before he was killed.

Gunner's father said drugs took over his son's life. "All I can tell you is when he's not on drugs, he's a great guy. He's the sort of guy that you want as your son."

Ricky Gunner was found near Rio Seco Elementary School in Santee Saturday night. Detectives did a sweep through the area to make sure no evidence was left behind that could be potentially dangerous for children. Gunner will make an appearance in court Wednesday, September 28th. He faces a first degree murder charge.

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