PUBLISHED: April 1, 12:33 a.m. | UPDATED: April 2, 3:55 p.m.

Orange police officers were dispatched March 31 to respond to the 20th mass shootings the U.S. has seen in just over two weeks. Two press conferences were held April 1 at the Orange Police Department. Photos by SAM ANDRUS, Photo Editor

The Orange Police Department identified 44-year-old Aminadab Gaxiola Gonzalez as the suspect in the March 31 shooting that injured five and killed four, including a 9-year-old boy, one male and two female adults. He is facing four counts of murder, one count of attempted murder and two counts of attempted murder of a police officer, according to an April 2 press release from the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.

Police said the shooting took place at office suites belonging to Unified Homes, a mobile home real estate company, at 202 W. Lincoln Ave. The deceased victims have been identified by the Orange Police Department and family members as Luis Tovar, 50, his daughter Genevieve Raygoza, 28, Leticia Solis Guzman, 58, and 9-year-old Matthew Farias. The child is believed to be the son of Ismeralda Tamayo, the sole survivor who was found cradling the deceased child in the office building’s courtyard. The suspect has a business or personal relationship with all the victims, according to Lt. Jennifer Amat, a spokeswoman for the Orange Police Department.

Authorities said Tamayo and Gonzalez, whose last known address is in Fullerton, sustained gunshot wounds and were transported to an undisclosed local hospital, where they are in critical yet stable condition. Amat did not release information on the nature of the suspect’s wounds, and it’s unclear whether police shot Gonzalez or if his wounds were self-inflicted. Gonzalez's attorney Ken Morrison said his arraignment was delayed to Monday due to his medical condition.

A backpack that held pepper spray, handcuffs and ammunition was located at the scene and is believed to belong to the suspect, Amat said. One firearm, a semi-automatic handgun, was also recovered. A preliminary investigation found that the suspect purchased the weapon legally. Amat added that the shooting had taken place on both levels of the building. 

The suspect used a bicycle-type cable lock to block off the north and south property gates, Amat said. Officers used bolt cutters to gain entry, engaging the shooter from outside the premises. The suspect may be eligible for the death penalty, according to Todd Spitzer, the Orange County District Attorney.

“We are now presently looking at whether his locking of the front and the back gates constitutes a lying in wait,” Spitzer said at an April 1 press briefing. “We’re going to do everything correctly. We’re not going to rush, and we’re not going to make mistakes.”

Shots were actively being fired March 31 as police officers arrived around 5:30 p.m. PST, after responding to a call of a shooting at an office building, Amat said. No officers were injured and authorities said there is no current threat to the public.

“This was not a random act of violence,” Amat said at an April 1 press briefing. “It is our understanding that there were not a lot of other people on the complex, if any.”

At a second press briefing held later in the day April 1, Amat reported that the suspect arrived at 202 W. Lincoln Ave. in a rental car and is believed to have lived in an Anaheim motel room prior to the shooting.

East and West Lincoln Avenue are blocked off to incoming traffic. Residents in a neighboring apartment complex peered out of window blinds on the night of March 31, gazing at a fire truck and squad cars circled around the entryway to the office building.

The event marks the 20th mass shooting in the U.S. in just over two weeks since the fatal shootings in Atlanta, Georgia, and Denver, Colorado. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Rep. Katie Porter, whose district includes Orange County, expressed distress over the mass shooting on Twitter.

This is the deadliest shooting Orange has seen since 1997, when a former Caltrans employee killed four workers at the agency’s maintenance yard. The Orange Police Department is working with multiple agencies on the active investigation, including the FBI. Amat said police officers’ body camera footage will be released, but it is not clear when.

This is a developing story. Follow The Panther on social media and at www.thepanthernewspaper.org for updates.