Mother of suspect accused of shooting street vendor speaks out, says son was 'influenced'
'If he did something wrong, he has to pay the consequences.'
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The mother of the 18-year-old man arrested in connection with the murder of a street vendor on November 20 says she's shocked and in disbelief about her son's arrest.
RELATED: 18-year-old arrested for shooting, killing street vendor in central Fresno
Fresno Police said on Wednesday that suspect Jacob Rangel confessed to being in a dispute with the victim, Jose Rivera, earlier in the day.
Marisol Flores told Action News that Jacob is a senior in high school and the father of a baby girl. She described her son as an affectionate young man who loves his child and his siblings.
She said Jacob told her about the crime moments after officers showed up at her door.
Flores believes her son was 'influenced' and was hanging with the wrong crowd but would not kill someone over a money issue.
"I feel that he was influenced somehow because that is not my son. He was raised in a loving home in a family that loves him. If he did something wrong he has to pay the consequences. He was not raised to take lives, he was raised to respect lives," she said.
Flores also offered apologies and sympathy to the victim's family.
