One patron said the man was shot in the mouth during a dispute, but that was unconfirmed report.
A man showed up at the door of the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino with a gunshot wound to the face on Friday. The man was sitting in a parking lot on the Santa Rosa Rancheria when a loud bang went off and the man was shot.
The man told police he felt intense pain in his face. The man, who remains unidentified, says he drove himself and his passenger to the doors of the Tachi Palace Casino, which is owned by the Santa Rosa Indian Community.
Casino Staff Detained the Second Man
When the men showed up at the casino doors, staff said they did not know if the second man was a suspect or if he was armed, so they implemented the “active shooter mode” as a precaution. Once police arrived, the man told them he had no idea who shot him or whether he was the intended victim or not.
The shooting victim was treated by casino staff for his condition, while the called a care flight. Eventually, he was life-flighted to Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno. ABC30 News stated he was in the hospital with “moderate, non-life threatening, (facial) injuries“.
“A Long Night for My Detectives”
Dave Putnam, the Kings County Assistant Sheriff, said his police investigators would scour the area to get evidence, and they hoped to find clues which might lead to the shooter. Assistant Sheriff Putnam indicated the man might know more about the shooter.
Putnam said, “Well, it’s going to be a long night for my detectives. They’re gonna scoure that area, try to find a crime scene. They got people to interview — I have detectives in Fresno interviewing the victim who’s, what I’ve been told, is only moderately cooperative than he was indicating to authorities.”
Law Enforcement Interrogated the Second Man
Because casino security detained the second man who appeared at the casino doors, police were able to interview the man. They were trying to determine his role in the shooting. Given Dave Putnam’s skepticism, it is possible these interviews might have provided them with contradictory information than what the shooting victim said.
That has led to speculation that the men know who the shooter was, but did not want to snitch on the shooter, due to some code. If so, such a code would indicate the men were involved in some level or gang activity or organized crime. Such people maintain a code which discourages them from cooperating with authorities.
Another theory is the second man was the shooter. In that case, it would be much more likely the shooting was an accident and both men withheld information to keep the second man out of legal trouble. In that scenario, the fact that the second man escorted the shooting victim to the casino doors would indicate the man did not shoot with malice. That was the early speculation, because it was reported police had detained a suspect.
Jeffery Gasson, who was attending at Naval squadron party at the casino, said the rumor in the casino was the man had had a dispute and been shot in the mount. Gasson said, “What was told to us was it was just a dispute and I don’t think it was inside the hotel or the casino at all.”
Sheriff’s Office Collected Video Footage
Because the Santa Rosa Rancheria is home to a modern casino, the complex has a great deal of video surveillance. The Tachi Palace Casino management has provided police with surveillance footage of the parking lot, in hopes it might provide details on the shooting.
In the meantime, officers of Kings County Sheriff’s Office have asked potential witnesses of the incident to come forward and share any information they might have.
About Tachi Palace Casino
Tachi Palace was opened in 1983 as a bingo hall in Lemoore, a city of 24,000 people in King’s County, California. In 1986, the Santa Rosa Indians expanded the operation until it became “the most luxurious bingo hall in the state”. British-American Bingo Inc. managed the bingo games which took place there.
In 1994, the bingo parlor was converted into one of California’s Native American casinos. At the time, the facility was named Palace Indian Gaming Center. The Santa Rosa Indians have added more slot machines to the gaming floor several times over the years, despite opposition by the state. In 2005, a major casino expansion took place. At that time, the venue was renamed Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino.
