Two Cathedral City residents were behind bars Wednesday in connection with the fatal shooting of a 13-year-old boy.
James Ian Carter, 19, and Christian Arturo Ilde Milward, 18, were arrested in San Diego around 8:10 p.m. Monday and were later transferred and booked in Riverside County on suspicion of murder, conspiracy to commit a felony and gang membership, police said.
They were each being held in lieu of $1 million bail.
According to the Cathedral City Police Department, officers responded shortly after 8 p.m. Aug. 13 to a reported shooting at the intersection of Whispering Palms Trail and Mission Indian Trail.
Officers arrived at the scene and found a person suffering from gunshot wounds on the ground, according to Cmdr. Jon Enos.
Despite life-saving measures from paramedics, the person was pronounced dead at the scene.
A preliminary investigation revealed that the victim – later identified as 13-year-old Alan Martinez of Cathedral City – and two other people were walking together on Whispering Palms Trail when a dark colored sedan approached them and a confrontation ensued for unspecified reasons, Enos said.
During the alleged confrontation, an occupant of the vehicle shot at the group, striking the teen.
It was not known if the other two individuals sustained any injuries.
Anyone with information about the shooting was urged to contact Detective Steven Armenta at sarmenta@cathedralcity.gov, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (760) 341-7867.
