It was supposed to be a family gathering on the northeast side of Fresno, California. When reporters arrived at the putty-colored ranch house on Monday, coolers were still sitting in the front yard, and a pink-and-blue banner was tacked to the window. “Happy Birthday!” it said in looping letters.
But according to the Fresno Police Department, the weekend celebration turned tragic when a 23-year-old man couldn’t take no for an answer and opened fire after a young woman rejected his advances. One of the bullets hit her 10-month-old daughter in the head, and the child has been hospitalized ever since.
CA:WOMAN REJECTS MAN, HE SHOOTS HER BABY IN HEAD
KFSN-TV,KFSN,Fresno Police Department | 11:09 PM, Tue Jun 25 2019
VIDEO: Deziree Menagh had shunned Marcos Echartea’s advances
“We are hoping and praying that baby Fayth is able to survive this injury as well as make a full recovery,” Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer said at a Sunday news conference hours after the shooting.
Before shots rang out early Sunday morning, Deziree Menagh, 18, showed up to the house party with her infant daughter, Fayth Percy. There, she ran into Marcos Antonio Echartea, who reached out and grabbed her by the hand. The 23-year-old was a virtual stranger to her, police said: The two had met for the first time about a week prior and hadn’t interacted since.
“There was no relationship,” Dyer said. “It was very apparent that he wanted a relationship with her.”
Uncomfortable with his advances, Menagh pulled away. She went back outside, joining the partygoers who had gathered in the yard, and told her friends and family what had just transpired.
Despite being rebuffed, Echartea allegedly continued to hound the young mother. He followed her outside, taking a seat on the porch, and tried to pull her close and force her to sit on his lap, Dyer said. Once again, Menagh pulled away. This time, she decided it was time to go.
After collecting Fayth from inside the house, Menagh left the party with a male friend. By then, it was nearly 4 a.m. on Sunday. They got in his car and started driving away, but they didn’t get very far. For some reason – police say they aren’t entirely clear why – the driver made a U-turn about a block away from where the party was happening and stopped the car. It’s possible that the two friends were waiting for Echartea to leave the area so that Menagh, who lives nearby, could get home safely, Dyer said.
But just as they were parking, they spotted him hurriedly pacing toward the car. As soon as Echartea got close, he pulled out a handgun and started firing, police said. Three rounds hit the driver’s side window. One came whizzing through the glass toward Fayth, who was in her mother’s arms in the passenger’s seat. The bullet struck the 10-month-old in the side of the head.
The window had been rolled up, which slowed the velocity of the bullets, Dyer added. If that hadn’t been the case, the infant likely would have died. “We’re very fortunate that she’s alive,” he said.
A California woman rejected a man at a party. Then he shot her baby in the head, police say.
Marcos Antonio Echartea reportedly tried to hold Deziree Menagh’s hand and force her to sit on his lap at a weekend get-together before he opened fire.
www.mercurynews.com
The mom's Facebook, looks like degenerate.
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