Victims Of Gaslamp District Shooting Rampage Identified

SAN DIEGO, CA — Authorities Monday publicly identified five men who were wounded -- one fatally -- during a shooting rampage last week in the Gaslamp District by an assailant armed with an untraceable "ghost gun."

Parking valet Justice Boldin, 28, was standing on a sidewalk in front of Pendry San Diego Hotel in the 500 block of J Street about 10:30 p.m. Thursday when a man walked up to him, pulled a 9mm pistol and shot him without provocation, according to police.

"The (shooter) began to walk away, but quickly turned and fired again at the victim," Lt. Andra Brown said.

Boldin, an Ace Parking employee, died at the scene.

The assailant then walked off to the north, confronted a group of men in the 500 block of Fifth Avenue and shot each of them.

Following the second barrage of gunfire, two witnesses rushed the shooter and tackled him, then held him for police with the help of other good Samaritans. Officers soon arrived and arrested the suspect, later identified as 32-year-old Travis Fereydoun Sarreshteh of San Diego, following a struggle during which they shocked him with an electric stun gun.

Two of the surviving victims -- Vincent Gazzani, 27, of Perrineville, New Jersey; and 68-year-old Steven Ely of San Diego -- suffered gunshot wounds to their upper bodies and remain hospitalized in stable condition, Brown said.

The other two -- Alexander Balis, a 26-year-old resident of Mullica Hill, New Jersey; and Jatil Kodati, 28, of Jersey City, New Jersey -- were treated for gunshot wounds to their arms.

The group may have been fired on following "some kind of altercation," according to Police Chief David Nisleit.

"We're still trying to work exactly that out," Nisleit told reporters on Friday. "Possibly somebody bumped into somebody and that caused an exchange of words."

The suspect -- who allegedly carried out the shootings with a so- called "ghost gun," a non-commercial firearm lacking a serial number -- refused to provide police with a statement following his arrest, according to Nisleit.

Sarreshteh was booked into San Diego Central Jail on suspicion of one count of murder and four counts of attempted murder. He was being held without bail pending arraignment, scheduled for May 3.

— City News Service