SAN JOSE / RIO LINDA – An Elverta resident is one of eight suspected gang members arrested this week in connection with a deadly shooting in San Jose that happened back in January, according to San Jose Police.
Dario Botello, 19, of Elverta, and Damien Perea, 19, of Sacramento, were among the eight individuals taken into custody on Wednesday following a large-scale, multi-agency operation. San Jose Police Chief Paul Joseph announced the arrests Friday, stating that seven SWAT teams and numerous officers were involved in searching 14 homes and 20 vehicles, seizing multiple weapons.
The arrests stem from a shooting on January 11, 2025, on Loma Verde Drive in San Jose, which resulted in the death of a 27-year-old man. This was the city’s first homicide of the year. Police have not released the victim’s name but stated he was not known to the suspects.
Chief Joseph described the operation as having a “historic scope” necessary to dismantle an “exceptionally violent gang.” Authorities believe the suspects are linked to a street gang based in Greenfield (Monterey County). This same gang has reportedly been connected to other violent crimes, including a March 2024 mass shooting in King City that killed four and wounded seven, and a double murder in southern Monterey County the previous month.
“These young people embraced a world that turned them into executioners of a cause that will never serve them,” Chief Joseph said.
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan thanked the involved law enforcement agencies, stating, “It was not a random act, it was a premeditated attack by a violent gang… These suspects made a mistake by coming to San Jose. They thought they could bring their violence here and get away with it. They were wrong.”
Besides Botello and Perea, the other suspects arrested are:
- Adrian Pineda-Juarez, 20, of Greenfield
- David Gomez-Moreno, 19, of Soledad
- Andre Novoa, 18, of Greenfield
- Diego Narez, 19, of King City
- Anthony Martinez, 19, of Soledad
- Eduardo Camacho-Hernandez, 20
All suspects were booked into the Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of murder. Pineda-Juarez was already in custody in Monterey County for a separate homicide case.
San Jose Police ask anyone with additional information about the January homicide to contact Detective Sgt. Martinez or Detective Jorgensen at 408-277-5283 or via email through the department’s homicide unit contacts.