Suspect in shooting of woman and 1-year-old had long criminal history

TULARE, Calif. (KFSN) -- A shooting in Tulare has torn a family to pieces and new details are coming out. The names of the mother and baby who are clinging on to life have been released. They are 39-year-old Michelle Mosqueda and her one-year-old daughter Eva Zamora.

Investigators said they were shot by Eva's father, Larry Zamora, hours before he barricaded himself in a home and took his own life. At the home Zamora was hiding in, you can still smell the tear gas police used to try to flush him out after the shooting. By that time, investigators said he was already dead.

In hospitals miles away from Tulare, Mosqueda and her baby Eva remain in critical condition. Investigators said Eva's dad shot them at a friend's house Thursday morning before he barricaded himself inside another home and taking his own life.

"So many other avenues he could have taken but that's what some harsh drugs will do to a person," a neighbor said. "It'll bring out the worst in him."

Neighbors who didn't want to be identified said it's a tragedy and they knew he was a bad guy. According to the sheriff's office, Zamora was a known gang member with a violent history. Court documents reveal a long list of charges dating back to 1997. Including a hit-and-run charge from 2009, misdemeanor assault and battery charges from 2010 and felony drug charges from 2013.

"It was just like a bad feeling," the neighbor said. "I don't like to judge people by the way they look but it's just a feeling I had inside like I didn't want my daughter walking out there if he was out there."

Days before the shooting, people who know Zamora said his family was already falling apart. He was living at across town with Michelle's parents and was kicked out, according to a family member who said he was aggressive.

Neighbors said he kept coming back all week trying to convince Michelle to leave with him. They heard a lot of arguments and police were called once. The day of the shooting, witnesses said Zamora was high on meth and there was an argument before the shots were fired.

Investigators said Michelle had Eva in her arms.

"I haven't too many good things for the outcome of the baby but we're hoping and praying the baby and mom make it," the neighbor said.

It all ended with a long standoff and more shots fired. In the quiet neighborhood, Zamora was found dead in a hallway of the home he was hiding in and people who live nearby are still shaken.

Family members said they are not asking for donations, just thoughts and prayers for Michelle and Eva.