SDPD

25-Year-Old Facing Murder Charges in Connection to Deadly Drive-By in Mountain View

The victims were wounded just after 3:30 p.m. along Ocean View Boulevard in San Diego's Mountain View community

NBC 7

A suspect is behind bars in connection with a drive-by shooting this week that killed a man and injured another in a Mountain View-area neighborhood.

Elijah James Smith, 25, was taken into custody Wednesday during a traffic stop in City Heights, according to San Diego police.

Smith allegedly opened fire from inside a westbound car on a group of people standing in a parking lot outside a convenience store in the 3600 block of Ocean View Boulevard shortly after 3:30 p.m. Monday, Lt. Andra Brown said.

The gunfire wounded Dorian Franklin, 34, and 26-year-old Veterial Webster, both residents of San Diego. Paramedics took Franklin to a trauma center, where he was pronounced dead.

Webster left the scene of the shooting in a private vehicle and arrived a short time later at a hospital, where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

The circumstances that led to the shooting "are still unclear," according to Brown.

"Detectives are attempting to locate evidence and any possible witnesses," the lieutenant said Thursday. "Investigators are aware several people were present at the time of the incident but scattered immediately after. Detectives would like to speak to them."

Police did not disclose what led investigators to identify Smith as the alleged shooter. He was booked into San Diego Central Jail on suspicion of murder and attempted murder and was being held without bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Friday afternoon.

Anyone with information regarding the shooting was asked to call the SDPD's Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.

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