Santa Rosa teen arrested in August shooting linked to fatal 2023 school stabbing

An 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of shooting another man in Santa Rosa this week at the beginning of this year He was also involved in incidents that led to the fatal stabbing of a student in 2023 at Montgomery High School.

Police suspect Santa Rosa resident Juan Carlos Cruz fired two shots at a motorist on Sunset Boulevard, one block south of Sebastopol Road, on Aug. 13, police Sgt. Patricia Seffens said. The driver was treated at an area hospital for life-threatening injuries and was later released.

Officers arrested Cruz at his job in Windsor on Wednesday after a months-long investigation.

Police said they found a loaded handgun in the employee’s closet and later found ammunition at his home in Santa Rosa.

They said they believed the August shooting was gang-related because the driver was wearing clothing associated with gang activity and was in an area known for the presence of rival gangs.

Cruz was booked into Sonoma County jail on suspicion of four felonies: attempted murder, assault with a firearm, carrying a firearm with intent to commit a felony and carrying a concealed firearm.

He is being held without bail and is scheduled to appear in Sonoma County Superior Court on Friday.

Cruz and his mother, Maria Cervantes, were named to Santa Rosa City Schools. as cross-defendants In a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the county by the family of Jayden Pienta, who died after being stabbed during a class fight on March 1, 2023.

The district alleges Pienta and Cruz, then 16, entered the classroom and confronted another student, Daniel Pulido, who is accused of stabbing Pienta in the chest and back.

Pienta died at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Cruz also had injuries, but they were not considered serious.

In November 2023, Sonoma County Juvenile Court Judge Ken Gnoss ruled that Pulido Not responsible for Pienta’s death but found him responsible for bringing guns onto campus.

Gnoss said Pienta was “aggressive” in the fight and that he and Cruz planned to attack Pulido.

The case is still pending in court and the next hearing will be held in January.

You can reach Staff Writer Madison Smalstig at [email protected]. @madi.smals on X (Twitter).