GOSHEN, Ind. — Some of the five people shot in Goshen on Saturday were teenagers, say investigators.
In a news conference on Monday, Elkhart County prosecutor Vicki Becker, Goshen Mayor Jeremy Stutsman, and Goshen Police Chief Jose Miller laid out all the details they are willing to release about the shooting thus far.
They say the shooter was David Varela Morales, 20. Police say he shot the group of five people, four of whom were siblings of the Arellanos-Rios family. Chief Miller is quick to clarify some rumors about the motive for the shooting.
“I’ve seen a few things that have been posted publicly that I want to clear up,” he said. “One was stating this had to do with gang activity. This had nothing to do with gang activity.”
Morales was one of the five people shot. Police say one of the victims, who they called Richard, died at the home where the shooting happened along Rosemare Ct. Police would not say how old Richard was. Morales died later on at the hospital.
“The news of this horrific shooting that has devastated families and our community has hit up all hard,” said Mayor Jeremy Stutsman. “As a community, we need to support our police and public safety network. We also need to come together to create an impenetrable support system to help those in the most need when it comes to behavioral and mental health crisis’s.”
Bethany Christian School in Goshen confirmed that the shooting involved one of their families.
Miller said the shooting is part of a growing trend of escalating violence in Goshen.
“This year, so far since December 31, we have had 19 acts of gun violence, 5 injuries, 4 deaths, 3 adults arrested, 4 juveniles arrested, 5 residents shot at, 3 incidents of vehicles being shot at,” he said.
Police don’t plan to release any more details about the shooting until they are done investigating.
