Bouncer killed in shooting outside Merced bar

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- A bouncer was shot and killed outside the Merced bar where he once worked. Now, police are trying to track down the suspect.

The Merced County Coroner's Office has identified the victim as 24-year-old Ishmael Escalante. Friends and relatives say the victim was a loving, caring young man who always put others before himself. He's from Dos Palos, but worked off and on at La Hacienda in Merced, and that's where he was gunned down in front of several people Sunday night.

Merced police say an average size crowd was inside the bar side of La Hacienda on G Street near Olive Avenue when gunfire erupted outside just before 10:30 p.m.

"What we've learned so far from witnesses at the scene is that the victim was standing out in front of the business. There were some shots heard, he came running in, collapsed and went down to the floor," said Merced Police Capt. Tom Trindad.

Trindad says the suspect then stood in the doorway and continued to fire at Escalante as he laid on the ground by the pool table. Moments later, the shooter ran away, leaving customers and staff in shock.

"You can imagine the frightening conditions that the poor patrons went through. You could see some of them that nearly went to the floor, and some people were trying to run to escape," said Trindad.

Investigators are now looking at surveillance video for clues but say the gunman had his face covered and was wearing dark clothes. The motive is also unclear.

"Detectives now will start checking into the victim's life to determine maybe there's some connection of why this person was shot," said Trindad.

The owner of La Hacienda tells Action News that Escalante was employed as a bouncer there until a few months ago and was always happy, smiling and willing to help. He says this was a tragic, isolated incident that could have happened anywhere, but he'll work with police to ensure the safety of customers and staff.

Police say they have responded to La Hacienda in the past for fights and even a stabbing in the parking lot. But the owner and his employees say those are issues that can happen at any bar, and they've never experienced anything like this deadly shooting.

This is the 15th homicide in the city of Merced this year, compared to five last year.