Dad and Son Shot Dead on Father's Day as Police Hunt for Suspect

A California father and son were fatally shot triggering a manhunt for a suspect, according to police.

The Madera County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) was alerted to reports that a man had been shot at a home in the 23000 block of Avenue 9 in Madera, central California, at about 4 a.m. on June 18.

At about the same time, officers received another call about a shooting victim at another residence in the 23000 block of Las Palmas, also in Madera.

An MCSO Facebook post shared the same day as the shootings read: "Deputies responded to both locations and discovered multiple victims suffering from gunshot wounds. Two victims, later determined to be father and son, were declared deceased at the scene.

"One victim was transported to a regional medical facility for treatment. Their status is unknown at this time."

Officers did not release any further information about the victims' identities, including their ages.

Police believe the two incidents are linked and Francisco Trejo Ramirez, 51, was identified as a suspect and was known to be an acquaintance of the victims.

MCSO investigators warned Ramirez "should be considered armed and dangerous." He was reported leaving the scene in a 2007 silver Toyota Tacoma pickup truck with the California license plate number: 80760B2.

According to the Gun Violence Archive, a database that collects information about shootings from across the country, three people have been shot dead in Madera since June 1 this year.

The same database found 64 people have been shot dead across California since June 1 this year.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said there were 2,495 reported homicide deaths in California in 2021. The homicide death rate in the state that year was 6.4 per every 100,000 people in California. There were 26,031 homicide deaths reported across the U.S. and 20,958 involved a firearm.

This amounted to 7.8 reported homicide deaths per 100,000 people across the country The homicide death rate of 6.3 per 100,000 people where a firearm was involved, stioll according to the CDC.

In 2019, an estimated 28.3 percent of homicide victims were killed by someone they knew other than family members—namely an acquaintance, neighbor, friend, or boyfriend, according to the FBI.

The relationship between murder victims and offenders was unknown in 48.9 percent of murder and nonnegligent manslaughter incidents.

Anyone with any information about Ramirez's whereabouts has been asked to contact MCSO at (559) 675-7770, or people can choose to remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at 559-498-STOP (7867). If you see Ramirez, call 911.

Newsweek has contacted the MCSO for comment via email.