More 91 Freeway Violence, 1 Suspect In Custody

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A man suspected of shooting at occupants of a vehicle on the Riverside (91) Freeway was being held Monday in lieu of $2 million bail.

Lorenzo Antonio Parra, 32, of Corona was arrested Sunday and booked into the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside on suspicion of attempted murder, carrying a loaded firearm without a license and driving on a suspended license.

According to the California Highway Patrol, a motorist at the wheel of a Chevrolet Silverado was going west on the 91, just east of Adams Street in Riverside, when his pickup came under fire about 10:40 p.m. Saturday.

Officer Juan Quintero said the victim, whose name was not released, exited the freeway on McKinley Avenue in Corona and called 911, describing the vehicle from which the shots originated as a burgundy Honda Accord occupied by two individuals.

"The victim related that he observed the muzzle flash and heard the gunshots but did not know where the bullets struck his vehicle and was not able to obtain a license plate," Quintero said.

Neither the man nor his passenger was injured.

Quintero said patrol units canvassed the freeway and surrounding streets, locating Parra's sedan on the westbound 91 at Maple Street after midnight. Because the suspect's car matched the description given, it was stopped as it exited the freeway onto Green River Road, according to Quintero.

After officers confirmed that Parra was driving on a suspended license, he was detained, along with his companion, whose identity was not disclosed.

"A thorough search of the suspect vehicle resulted in locating a loaded Ruger 9mm handgun, loose ammunition and one used shell casing," Quintero said.

According to jail records, Parra has a prior misdemeanor conviction for drunken driving.

Quintero did not provide a potential motive, and he did not say whether the shooting might have been connected to the rash of vandalism attacks targeting vehicles traveling on the 91 Freeway between Anaheim and Riverside over the last month (see updates below on attacks carried out Monday).

Numerous cars have sustained damage from windows being blown out, presumably by a BB or pellet gun. It is unclear how many suspects there may be, including copycats.

The spate of unsolved attacks using BB or pellet guns continued Monday on the Riverside (91) Freeway in Riverside and Corona, where windows on four vehicles were blown out, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Officer Ramon Duran told City News Service two cars were targeted within a 60-second span about 7:40 a.m. on the eastbound 91 between Magnolia and Tyler streets in Riverside.

"On one car, the rear window was shattered. On another, the right rear passenger side window was damaged," Duran said.

He said five minutes later, a car on the westbound 91 at Tyler sustained damage to the right rear window, and roughly four minutes after that, at 7:50 a.m., a sedan approaching McKinley Street in Corona was struck by projectiles that shattered the rear window.

"There were no injuries, and no suspects were identified," Duran said.

According to the CHP spokesman, two incidents were additionally reported Sunday night. One occurred at 9:45 p.m. on the eastbound 91, just east of Magnolia, where the right rear window on a vehicle was hit, and the other one occurred 20 minutes later, also on the eastbound 91, near Tyler, where projectiles struck the right front passenger window of a car, causing major damage.

No one was hurt in either attack.

Altogether, the CHP estimates that close to 100 vandalism incidents have occurred in Riverside, Orange and Los Angeles counties over the last month. It is unclear how many perpetrators there are, whether some are copycats, and what types of cars they're driving, though white sedans were spotted in attacks earlier this month in Corona.

At the end of last week, multiple vehicles were targeted on the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway in Orange County. No one was injured.

The CHP has boosted patrols on area freeways and may be a short distance away and have a better chance of capturing a potential suspect if the call is made right away, investigators said. Also, the freeway cameras will help isolate a consistent make or model of a suspect vehicle if investigators can narrow down where an incident occurred.

"We are taking each of these incidents seriously and actively searching for those responsible," CHP Border Division Assistant Chief Donald Goodbrand said last Wednesday.

On May 14, a CHP officer's cruiser sustained a damaged window on the eastbound 91 at Highway 241 in Anaheim Hills. Authorities said it was possible that a rock slung by a passing big rig might have caused the window to crack, but it might also have been vandalism.

Similar incidents have been reported in Los Angeles County. Many have been in the Westminster area of Orange County.

Two motorists reported shattered windows while driving on the San Diego (405) Freeway in the Seal Beach area of Orange County on April 27.

Anyone with information about the shootings was asked to call the CHP Border Division Investigative Services Unit at 714-288-6336.