Two of the three people killed in a shooting outside Reno’s largest casino earlier this week were visiting the city for a bachelor party, police said.
Justin Aguila and Andrew Canepa, both from Southern California, were fatally shot from behind on Monday in the valet area of the Grand Sierra Resort while they waited for a car to take them to the airport, according to a statement issued by the Sparks Police Department Tuesday night. They were both 33 years old.
According to the Los Angeles Times, they were part of a bachelor party made up of 2010 graduates of Thousand Oaks High in Los Angeles, where some of them played football together.
A third man, identified as 66-year-old Angel Martinez from Reno, was also killed in the shooting. His niece, Becka Gonzalez, started a GoFundMe page, writing that Martinez had spent decades working at different casinos and restaurants across the city. However, The Grand Sierra Resort has said no employees were killed.
“Our uncle came from a large loving family, one of eleven siblings. He had a lifelong love of cooking, just like many of his brothers,” she wrote.
“His greatest joy was being a father and grandfather,” the post continued. “His son Michael and grandson were his heart.”
Police said the gunman, 26-year-old Dakota Hawver, lived just minutes away from the resort. Armed with a 9mm handgun, he opened fire in the valet area on Monday around 7 a.m., striking five people, including Aguila and Canepa. He then proceeded through the parking lot, at which point he allegedly fired at a passing car, driven by Martinez.
He allegedly fired off more than 80 rounds, police said.
Hawver was taken into custody after being shot and wounded by law enforcement. He remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Investigators have so far uncovered no ties between the gunman and the victims. A motive for the shooting remained unclear as of Wednesday afternoon.
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