The name of Santa Maria’s second homicide victim of 2022 has been released.
Officers were dispatched shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday to a business on the 1900 block of South Broadway, according to Sgt. Andy Magallon of the Santa Maria Police Department.
They found the shooting victim down in the parking lot and determined he had died of his injuries.
On Wednesday, detectives confirmed Robert Ortega II, 19, of Santa Maria was the man fatally wounded in the shooting.
A GoFundMe page, available by clicking here, has been set up to help Ortega’s family, and raised more than $10,000 by mid-day Tuesday.
“With an extremely broken heart, I regret to inform you all that on the evening of March 13, 2022, we lost Robert Ortega, II in a tragic incident in Santa Maria,” a family member said.
Robert was born to Vanessa and Robert Sr. on Jan. 10, 2003, and grew up with multiple siblings in Santa Maria.
“He has a beautiful fiancée (Evelyn) and two amazing children Robert III or RJ (age 6 months) and Elena (age 5).”
Donations will help the family pay for a memorial along with helping care for his two children.
“And, please, live your life with kindness and gratitude each and every day, because you simply do not know when it may be your last.”
A memorial has been placed near the scene of the fatal shooting.
No arrests have been made in the case.
Investigators are asking anyone who may have witnessed the crime or have information to contact them at 805.928.378,1 extension 2277.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.