An unintentional shooting in Delhi Wednesday night left a 20-year-old woman dead and her fiancé charged with her murder.
The victim was identified by the Merced County Sheriff’s Department as Mirisa Ann Dinwiddie, 20, of Hilmar.
Arrested and charged with Dinwiddie’s death is her fiancé Fabio Luis Mendonca, 22, of Hilmar.
The fatal incident was reported to the Merced County Sheriff’s Department around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday at a home in the 9000 block of Griffith Avenue.
The caller said a woman had been shot in the face. The first deputy to arrive pronounced Dinwiddie dead at the scene, said sheriff spokesman Sgt. Scott Dover.
Dinwiddie had been shot in the head with a shotgun, Dover said.
Initially the shooting appeared to be accidental, but investigators soon changed course after reviewing the incident, Dover said.
“It was not necessarily intentional, but there was some negligence and based on that they made the arrest for homicide,” Dover said.
The shooting occurred at a family gathering. Dover said there was no dispute leading up to the shooting.
Several people witnessed the shooting and investigators were still putting together all the accounts to determine what transpired.
Mendonca spoke with investigators for an extended time prior to his arrest.
Both Dinwiddie’s and Mendonca’s Facebook page stated they were engaged to one another, with Dinwiddie writing “hes (sic) amazing can’t wait to marry him.”
Dinwiddie was a graduate of Hilmar High School, where she played basketball.