Napa police arrest trio after 2 young women shot to death

NAPA, Calif. - Napa police on Tuesday announced the arrests of three people following the shooting death of two young women over the weekend.

Police arrested John Nicholson Jr., 22, of Vallejo; Jessica Whitten, 19, of Santa Rosa; and Judith Adolph, 19, of Santa Rosa. Nicholson was arrested on suspicion of murder and the two 19-year-olds were arrested on suspicion of aiding in a felony.

The arrests stem from the Saturday evening deaths of two young women who were fatally shot in the 400 block of Riverside Drive. The victims were identified on Tuesday as Aileen Villasenor, 19, and 17-year-old Sasha.

Villasenor was the mother of a 9-month-old daughter. 

Police have not revealed a motive for the shooting, or the connection between the alleged shooters and the victims. Officials did say the two victims were acquaintances and have "familial ties to Napa." 

Nicholson was booked into the Napa County Department of Corrections on Monday at about 7:30 a.m.

Then, at 3 a.m. on Tuesday, Sonoma County Sheriff's detectives found the two 19-year-olds and also took them to jail. 

On Saturday, Brandon Perez, told KTVU that he held one of the girls as she lay dying.

As Perez told it, there were three young women about that age arguing on the side of a building near some boats in the area.

A dark car approached and Perez said he heard five shots before the driver sped off. He felt as though the driver also saw him, but as soon as they were out of sight, he ran over to where the shots had been fired.

"There was something about those pops that didn't feel right," he said. "There was a scream you feel throughout your body. It scared the crap out of me."

One of the victims was hunched over, and Perez said she had been shot in the head and back several times. He realized he was watching her take her last breaths.

A neighbor came and whisked the other two young women inside her house, the witness said. One young woman wasn't injured, but the other was hit in the abdomen and was taken to the hospital, where police said she died.  

Perez said that this area used to be quiet and safe, but has become a target of gang graffiti and crime in the last few years.

Another resident, Joshua Boules, agreed that it can get a bit rough in the neighborhood but "nothing like what happened last night."

Homicides in Napa are rare, let alone double homicides.

Napa police said they still need help with finding witnesses and digital evidence. Anyone who has information should contact Det. Dustin Dodd at  (707) 257-9568 or ddodd@cityofnapa.org.