Two men from the Bakersfield area were shot and killed before dawn Friday in Porterville, in the 460 block of South Main Street just north of the Tule River Bridge. Both victims were 30 years old, and both were pronounced dead at the scene after officers tried to render aid.
According to recorderonline.com, the Porterville Police Department began fielding multiple 911 calls about a shooting near 461 S. Main Street at 4:48 a.m. Friday. Officers arrived to find the two men suffering gunshot wounds, and as BakersfieldNow reports, officers provided aid until emergency personnel arrived, but both men were pronounced dead at the scene. The station identified the victims only as two 30-year-old men who resided in the Bakersfield area; their names have not been released.
Porterville Police Chief Bobby Rader requested help from the Tulare County Sheriff's Office Crime Lab to process the scene, per the same account. No suspect information or motive has been made public, and police have not said whether the men knew whoever opened fire on them.
Street Closed, Investigation Still Active
South Main Street was shut down from Date Avenue south to the Tule River Bridge as investigators worked the scene, and motorists were encouraged to use alternate routes until further notice, according to GV Wire. Authorities have not said when the closure was lifted. Police described this as an active and ongoing homicide investigation, the outlet's report notes, while also stating that the scene has been secured and there is no current threat to the surrounding area.
ABC30 Fresno, which first reported on the case Friday morning, says authorities were called to Main Street and Date Avenue just before 5 a.m. and that police released no other details beyond confirming two people were killed, according to ABC30 Fresno. Investigators have not disclosed a suspected weapon or identified any persons of interest.
A Separate Shooting Nearby
The Tulare County Sheriff's Office also said it was investigating a separate shooting near Road 256 and Teapot Dome Avenue, per recorderonline.com, though it was not described as connected to the Porterville killings. No further details on that incident were provided.
Anyone with information about the Main Street shooting is asked to call the Porterville Police Department at (559) 782-7400. No arrests have been announced, and police have not said whether any suspects have been identified.
