On January 18, officers were dispatched to the 2300 block of El Rancho Way, where a 38-year-old man was found deceased from a gunshot wound. The victim, identified as Fairfield resident Joshua Costan, was discovered with injuries that initially suggested an accidental, self-inflicted nature to the fatal event, according to the Fairfield Police Department.

While the Fairfield Police Department has been considering the possibility that an accidental discharge led to Costan’s death, they have not dismissed the likelihood of a homicide. As they collaborate with forensic experts to analyze the evidence. Meanwhile, details remain tightly under wraps as the authorities work to "preserve the integrity of the investigation," a stance confirmed by Hoodline's report on the incident.

This case marks the first homicide in Fairfield for the year 2025, casting a shadow over a city that previously recorded merely two homicides in 2024, both of which were solved.