3rd suspect arrested in the killings of 2 boys shot at Union City elementary school

UNION CITY, Calif. - Authorities have arrested a third suspect in the killings of two young boys who were shot at an elementary school parking lot last year in Union City. 

Carlos Gilberto Zepeda, 20, was arrested last week on charges that he participated in the killings of 11-year-old Kevin Hernandez and 14-year-old Sean Withington, the East Bay Times reported Thursday.

Zepeda faces two murder counts as well as related gang charges and gun enhancements, the newspaper said. It wasn’t immediately known if he has an attorney.

Alameda County authorities previously arrested Jason Cornejo, 18, and a then-17-year-old boy from Hayward who remains in juvenile court on the same charges.

Investigators have linked the November 2019 shooting to a longstanding dispute between two street gangs in the Union City area, where the killings occurred.

Police said the minivan the young victims were in was “riddled with bullets.” At the scene, police eventually recovered 36 rifle bullet casings and six 9mm handgun bullet casings, the newspaper said.