Man charged with fatally shooting a Riverside dad in road rage attack

A 64-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting a Riverside motorist during a road rage confrontation, firing a bullet that narrowly missed one of the victim's children before killing him, was charged with murder Tuesday.

Jose Juan Escobedo was arrested last week on suspicion of murder and attempted murder for the slaying of 25-year-old Sergio Oporto of Riverside. He was being held in lieu of $1 million bail.

According to Riverside Police, Oporto, his girlfriend and their 4-year-old and 3-month old children were driving along East La Cadena Drive shortly before 4 p.m. Feb. 3,,  when Escobedo allegedly began tailing them closely, angered for reasons still under investigation.

As they neared the intersection of La Cadena and Citrus Street, Escobedo pulled alongside them. Police reports state the driver appeared to be angry, pulled out a firearm, then fired a single gunshot into the passenger side of the car, over the seated 3-month-old child, striking Oporto in the head.

Escobedo immediately fled the scene, police said. Paramedics arrived moments later and found Oporto clinging to life. The victim was taken to Riverside Community Hospital, where he remained in a coma before dying Feb. 10.

The children and their mom were not injured.  

Escobedo was additionally charged with four felony counts, two each of willful child cruelty and one each of attempted murder and shooting at a vehicle, according to court records. He was also facing sentence enhancing allegations of discharging a firearm causing great bodily injury.

Homicide detectives began piecing together evidence collected at the scene and elsewhere, developing leads that ultimately pointed to Escobedo as the alleged shooter.