August 9, 2023 - Fresno Police Department officials report that on Monday, July 31, 2023, at 6:44 p.m., officers from the Northwest Policing District responded to a report of a victim of a shooting in the parking lot of the Walmart Supercenter, located at 4080 West Shaw Avenue. When officers arrived, they found a 24-year-old male inside a vehicle suffering from a gunshot wound to the upper body. Officers also responded to a report of a traffic collision in the 4100 block of North Brawley Avenue involving a sedan and a small SUV. When officers arrived, they found the sedan to be occupied by five adults. The female adult driver, identified as 66-year-old Mary Lou Flores, did not survive her wounds caused by the accident and was pronounced deceased. Officers discovered the occupants of the SUV had run from the scene of the accident before officers arrived.
Homicide detectives responded and began their investigation. Detectives learned that Flores and the 24-year-old shooting victim knew each other. They both were at a nearby location where they were involved in a disturbance. Both Flores and the shooting victim left the disturbance in their separate cars but were chased by two people in a Toyota Rav4. During the chase, the driver of the Rav4 fired multiple shots, one of which struck the 24-year-old male. The occupants in the Rav4 continued to chase the vehicle driven by Flores. During the chase, Flores collided with a guard rail and the Rav4. After the accident, both occupants of the Rav4 fled.
From their ongoing investigation, detectives identified the driver of the Rav4 as 20-year-old Johnny Tapia. Tapia’s girlfriend, 25-year-old Nicole Williams was identified as the passenger.
On Monday, August 7, 2023, Tapia was charged with Murder, multiple counts of Attempted Murder, and Assault with a Deadly Weapon. Based on Williams’ actions during this incident, she was also arrested for multiple counts of Assault with a Deadly Weapon and Accessory. Both Tapia and Williams were already in custody for an unrelated felony robbery charge.
Although an arrest has been made, detectives are asking anyone with information regarding this event to contact the Fresno Police Department.
Anyone calling with information can remain completely anonymous by contacting Crime Stoppers at (559) 498-STOP (7867). You may also contact Fresno Police Department – Homicide Detective S. Gray at 559-621-2451 or Detective R. Rockwell at 559-621-2448.
Source & photos: Fresno Police Department
