CHP helps detectives find suspected gunman days after shooting, Placer sheriff says
A few days after a victim was shot in the neck in Lincoln, detectives found and arrested the suspected gunman not far from where the shooting occurred, Placer County sheriff’s officials said.
Martin Sanchez-Soto of Lincoln was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. He was being held without bail Wednesday afternoon at Placer County Jail.
Detectives captured Sanchez-Soto, 49, on Tuesday after a second search of the area with the help of a California Highway Patrol helicopter, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office announced on its Facebook page Wednesday afternoon.
The shooting was reported about 6:40 p.m. Sunday in the 2300 block of Athens Avenue, just west of Highway 65 near Thunder Valley Casino and Resort.
Deputies arrived at the scene and found the victim with a gunshot wound to the neck, sheriff’s officials said. The victim was taken by ambulance to a hospital and he is expected to survive.
The deputies surrounded the area and searched for the suspect, later identified as Sanchez-Soto, who had left before deputies arrived, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Officers from the Lincoln Police Department and CHP Auburn area office joined sheriff’s officials in the search. The sheriff’s Special Enforcement Team found a pistol believed to have been used in the shooting.
The team also found a rifle in the trailer, where the suspect was living, sheriff’s officials said. After several hours of searching the area, the suspect was not found.
The detectives and deputies continued the shooting investigation and received information that led them to a creek near the shooting scene.
On Tuesday, the detectives and the CHP helicopter searched the area and found Sanchez-Soto. He was arrested without further incident, officials said.
