Man shot and killed while leaving party with wife in southwest Fresno identified

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The man who was shot and killed while leaving a party in southwest Fresno has been identified as 25-year-old Simon Martinez.

The shooting happened on Thorne Avenue and Geary Street just after midnight on Sunday.

Fresno police say 25-year-old Simon Martinez and his wife were walking home from a party.

"Quite frankly, this is a travesty. Like all of our victims in other cases, they don't deserve to die. In this particular case, the only crime that Simon committed was walking home with his wife," said Lt. Paul Cervantes with the Fresno Police Department.

"At some point, they were accosted by a white male in his 20s and for lack of better words, that individual tried to rob them. The robbery went awry," said Lt. Cervantes.

Lt. Cervantes says despite the suspect having a gun, Martinez was able to pin him to the ground.

At that point, officials say two other people came to the scene in a white vehicle.

"The passenger that exited was a Hispanic male, he produced an additional firearm and mortally wounded Simon as he was in the process of holding on to the first assailant," said Lt. Cervantes.

Martinez was rushed to Community Regional Medical Center, where he later died.

Police say all suspects are still at large and had no connection to Martinez and his wife.

"Simon Martinez is not a gang member, he is a person that worked in the landscaping business. He had been married to his wife for three years, they did not have any kids. By all accounts and talking to his family, he's a hard worker," said Lt. Cervantes.

Martinez's death is being classified as the 19th homicide in the Fresno this year.

Homicides are still down this year compared to previous years in the Fresno.

In 2021, 42 people died by July 17 compared to 32 people in 2022 and 20 so far this year.

"I can tell you that the number of officers that are out there proactively working, the fact that we implemented the district safety teams. All of that in conjunction with our efforts to reduce violent crime, I believe play a big factor," said Lt. Cervantes.

While shootings are also down by 12% overall, Lt. Cervantes adds there is still more work to do.

"I am not taking a victory lap at all. 40% decrease is good but I believe there is a lot of room to improve," said Lt. Cervantes.

Police have not released any suspect information.

Anyone with more information is asked to contact the Fresno Police Department.

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