Benjamin Garcia was getting ready to fall asleep Wednesday when gunfire startled him. He looked out his apartment window to see a man injured and running toward his complex.
"I heard some voices, I couldn't see nothing, then I seen a guy running right here, on the sidewalk, on the left side right there," said Garcia. "And then he collapses right there by that telephone pole. So I called 9-1-1 to come and help him because he looked pretty bad."
Two hours later, police say 48-year-old Shannon Ritherford died. Investigators aren't releasing a motive, but shortly after the murder, officers got a search warrant at a home across the street from the crime scene.
Those who live in the area say the victim sometimes stayed here with a female friend. Police say the woman is one of the several people being questioned about the circumstances that led to his death.
Mark Salazar with the Fresno Police Department said, "The case is progressing. No one has been arrested yet. It does not appear to be gang related at this point."
Garcia says he saw the victim struggling after the shooting. But he says he was still able to speak.
"All I heard him say is that he couldn't breathe," explained Garcia. "And that he had a gunshot wound or a wound by his chest, the left side of his chest. That was the last time I seen him, they took him."
Police say it's too early to tell whether the murder may have been caused by domestic dispute. So far, officers have not recovered the gun.
