Investigators say the same suspect was linked to attacks months apart on Palomar Mountain in San Diego County.
VALLEY CENTER, Calif. — A former San Diego television journalist was arrested this week on suspicion of carrying out two separate shootings on Palomar Mountain, including one that wounded a man in the arm and another that sent a bullet through a car window, authorities said.
Investigators with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office say Ricardo Berron, 46, was identified as the suspected gunman after deputies compared details from an Oct. 6, 2025 shooting and a Feb. 23, 2026 shooting near the summit of the mountain. He was booked on two counts of assault with a deadly weapon after his arrest March 10 at San Diego International Airport. Local television reports have also said the case is being investigated as a possible hate crime, adding to concern around a pair of attacks that happened in the same remote area popular with stargazers and drivers seeking quiet turnouts at night.
The most recent shooting, according to the sheriff’s office, happened along a dirt shoulder in the 32900 block of South Grade Road. Deputies said the victim told investigators he had been parked near the summit while looking at the stars when a man approached him. During that encounter, authorities said, the suspect pulled out a handgun and fired one round through the driver’s side window while the victim was still seated inside. The gunman then fled in a vehicle, investigators said, and the victim was not hurt. Deputies have not said how close the shooter was to the vehicle or how investigators connected the round or casing, if one was recovered, to the rest of the case. But the sheriff’s office said similarities between that attack and an earlier one gave detectives probable cause to tie both shootings to the same suspect.
That earlier shooting happened on Oct. 6, 2025, and left a man wounded in the arm, according to the sheriff’s office. Television station 10News identified the victim only as Joseph, a 57-year-old man who did not want his full name used. Other local coverage identified the victim as Joseph Valentino. He said he had been parked in a turnout near the top of Palomar Mountain when he woke to someone at his window. In an interview with local television, he said the man asked whether he was Mexican before aiming at him. “I raised my hands and asked him not to shoot,” the victim said. He said the shot missed his face and tore into his arm. The sheriff’s office has not publicly released a full narrative of the October case, including the exact weapon used, the time of night, or whether any witness saw the suspect leave.
Authorities said detectives later identified Berron as the suspected shooter and arrested him Tuesday, March 10, at the airport. After the arrest, deputies served a search warrant at his home in Chula Vista and seized a 9mm handgun believed to have been used in at least one of the shootings. The sheriff’s office has not said whether ballistic testing matched that gun to recovered evidence, or whether investigators believe one weapon or more than one weapon was used across the two attacks. NBC 7 reported Berron had once worked as a freelance contributor with Telemundo 20’s sales and marketing department and had not worked there for two years. People magazine, citing local reports, said he also had worked for Spanish-language stations in the San Diego area. Neither investigators nor local stations have said whether Berron had legal representation at the time of his arrest.
The case has drawn unusual attention because of the suspect’s media background and because both attacks happened in a mountain area known across Southern California for dark skies and scenic overlooks. Palomar Mountain sits in northern San Diego County and attracts campers, drivers and astronomy enthusiasts, especially on clear nights. In local interviews, reporters said both victims are Hispanic and that investigators were examining whether race played a role in the shootings. The sheriff’s office has not yet laid out that allegation in its public news release, but local reporting described both incidents as possible hate crimes after each victim was allegedly asked the same question before gunfire. That detail, if supported by evidence, could shape how prosecutors decide to file the case. At the same time, officials have released few records about the investigation, leaving open questions about motive, surveillance footage, witness statements and how long detectives had been tracking the suspect.
Television station 10News reported Berron was booked on one hate crime charge in addition to the assault allegations, then released after posting $100,000 bail. The sheriff’s office public release listed two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and said the investigation was still ongoing. That gap suggests formal charging decisions may still be developing as prosecutors review evidence collected from the shootings, the firearm seizure and interviews with the victims. Berron is scheduled to be arraigned March 17, according to local television reporting. By then, prosecutors could clarify whether the case will proceed only on assault charges or with added hate crime allegations. Investigators also may decide whether more forensic results, including ballistic testing, support additional counts tied to injury, attempted murder or firearm use. For now, authorities say only that the case remains active and that no further details are being released.
The human toll has been carried most visibly by the first victim, who described a quiet mountain stop turning into a sudden shooting. His account, and the second victim’s report of a bullet fired through a car window, have unsettled residents who know the summit as a place for solitude rather than violence. The sheriff’s office released a photo of the seized handgun but little else from the case, leaving neighbors and regular visitors with a thin official record and a long list of unanswered questions. Berron declined to answer questions from local television after his release, according to published reports. His wife told one outlet that deputies had arrested the wrong person. That response signaled a likely fight ahead over identification, motive and the evidence linking one suspect to two attacks in the same mountain corridor.
As of Friday, Berron had been arrested, released on bail and was expected in court March 17, while detectives continued investigating what they say were two connected shootings on Palomar Mountain.
Author note: Last updated March 13, 2026.