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Two arrested after gunshots reported
Jose Ayala
Jose Ayala

Two separate reports of gunshots between late Friday night and early Saturday morning led to the arrest of a juvenile and an intoxicated man.

There were no injuries reported in either incident and in both cases the firearms were not found.

The first incident started around 10 p.m. Friday when the Turlock Police Department received a call stating some teenagers were drinking alcohol in a parking lot in the 3000 block of Countryside Drive. The caller said the teens were in a silver Lexus with paper plates.

Officers were unable to locate the vehicle at that time. About an hour later the police department got a report of shots being fired from a vehicle matching the previous description and in the same area, said Turlock Police spokesman Sgt. Russ Holeman.

The vehicle fled the area and officers were looking for it, when it was spotted near Summerfair Park. An officer made a vehicle stop and took the juvenile driver into custody after finding him in possession of brass knuckles. No firearm was found in the vehicle, Holeman said.

The second incident began around 1:45 a.m. Saturday when police dispatch received a report of shots being fired in the 100 block of S. First Street.

The reporting party said a man in a pickup truck was firing a gun into the air.

“The vehicle was gone upon our arrival, however a few minutes later, an officer located a matching pickup truck in the area,” Holeman said.

Officers stopped the truck and detained the driver, later identified as Jose Ayala, 25.

“Inside the truck we located evidence of shots being fired, however, we did not locate the gun,” Holeman said.

Officers also found narcotics and evidence of drugs being sold.

Witnesses identified Ayala as the man seen shooting from the pickup truck, according to the police report.

Ayala was arrested on suspicion of narcotic sales, transportation, driving under the influence, and negligent discharge of a firearm in public.