Santa Rosa man, 22, remains hospitalized after being shot in face

A 22-year-old Santa Rosa man was still under treatment Thursday at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital one week after being shot in the face in what appeared to be a gang-related incident, Sonoma County sheriff’s investigators said.

The man was shot July 24 following a string of shootings in the area along Moorland Avenue in unincorporated southwest Santa Rosa where the sound of gunfire has prompted calls to 911. Bullets have pierced homes and vehicles, narrowly missing bystanders and occupants, according to recent reports.

It remained unclear whether the recent gunfire represented an escalation of violence among gang members or even if the incidents were related.

“We are working some active leads,” to identify suspects in the July 24 shooting, Sheriff’s Sgt. Shannon McAlvain said. “We are trying to connect other incidences in the area but we have not so far.”

Detectives are waiting for the wounded man - whose identity has not been released - to recuperate further before conducting a more detailed interview about what took place, he said.

The neighborhood is an area of focus for patrol deputies and detectives with the sheriff’s gang task force, particularly in the wake of recent shootings.

On Saturday, two men in a car with no license plate were arrested after a deputy found a loaded .380 caliber semiautomatic pistol with a live round in the chamber under the passenger seat, Sgt. Cecile Focha said. The deputy had been patrolling the area just after midnight and noticed the car ­- and that the passenger was wearing a blue bandanna around his neck, often a symbol of gang affiliation.

The man, later identified as Cristian Zaragoza Bahena, 19, of Sebastopol, also had a tattoo of the letters “NW” on the right side of his neck - possibly referencing nearby Neville Way - as well as a dark blue shirt and blue belt with an “A” on the belt buckle, all indicating gang allegiance, according to Focha. The color blue and the letter A can represent allegiance to a sureño gang called Angelino Heights, long entrenched in the neighborhood.

Bahena had four active warrants for his arrest, and was booked into the Sonoma County Jail on suspicion of a variety of weapons and criminal street gang violations and for allegedly skipping bail, records show. The other cases involved a stabbing and six felonies linked to possessing stolen property, Chief Deputy District Attorney Spencer Brady said.

The driver Aleksey Reyes, 20, of Santa Rosa had no driver’s license and was arrested on suspicion of numerous criminal street gang and weapons charges, the Sheriff’s Office said.

They were arraigned Tuesday and a judge set bail - $750,000 for Bahena and $100,000 for Reyes, Brady said. They are expected to return to court Tuesday to enter pleas.

On July 22, callers reported hearing gunfire and seeing at least three males, with blue bandannas covering their faces, running on Moorland Avenue between Thistle Lane and Gio Drive, the Sheriff’s Office reported.

No one was hit, and detectives have not yet identified suspects in that shooting, McAlvain said.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjreport.