A victim sustained non-life threatening injuries in a drive-by shooting in the 500 block of Gold Street on Sunday at 4:48 p.m.

Manteca Police said the victim was shot in the back and arm and was transported to the hospital with nonlife threatening injuries.

Gold Street is just south of — and runs parallel to — Louise Avenue between the Tidewater Bike Path and Golden West School.

The suspect vehicle was described as an early 2000s black Lexus GS430 or similar. If you have any information about this incident, call the non-emergency line of the Manteca Police Department at (209) 456-8101.

Arrests in organized Manteca retail thefts  

The crimes are brazen, and the cost ultimately gets passed back on to the same consumers that watch in horror as people run from retail locations carrying thousands of dollars in merchandise.

But this month local law enforcement officers arrested the second of two men believed to be responsible for a number of organized retail thefts – at places like Target and Walmart in Manteca where they made off with almost $4,000 in Nintendo Switch electronic devices – as part of a multijurisdictional effort to thwart organized retail theft throughout the region.

Richard Anthony Tafoya, 33, and Manuel Adolph Tafoya, 28, were identified by Manteca Police Officer David Brown while working with local loss prevention officers after video surveillance of the brothers became a common link between stores in different cities. The Stockton residents had hit Target locations in Manteca, Lathrop, and Stockton, and racked up more than $15,000 in stolen electronic merchandise.

It was determined that Richard Tafoya, once identified, was on active parole with a history of violent felonies. He was taken into custody in November with the assistance of parole officers and remains in custody at the San Joaquin County Jail on $290,000 bail.

Manuel Tafoya, once identified, was found to be on felony probation with the same history of violent crimes and was taken into custody earlier this month on multiple organized theft charges stemming from the incidents at Target, Walmart, and other locations throughout San Joaquin County. He is being held without bail.

Both men are scheduled to appear in Department M1 of the Manteca Branch of the San Joaquin County Superior Court on Tuesday, Jan. 28, at 8:30 a.m. Both are facing charges of conspiracy, organized retail theft, and grand theft in addition to a variety misdemeanor charges. Manuel Tafoya is also facing revocation of his probation – which led to bail being revoked in his case. 

Grand theft suspect

arrested after taking

items from Kohl’s

Manteca Police indicate grand theft suspect Chantel Bautista entered Kohl's in Manteca on Jan. 14 at 3 p.m.

Bautista returned one item and presented her California ID for the return. After the return, the suspect grabbed a shopping cart and selected numerous items of clothing, bedding, perfume, and jewelry with an overall value in excess of $1,300.

She exited the store making no attempt to purchase the items and was contacted outside by a store employee asking her if she had paid for the items. The employee noticed none of the items were bagged and were still loose in the cart. Chantel claimed she had already paid for the items and had the receipt for the one item she returned in hand. Chantel proceeded to her vehicle where she quickly loaded up the merchandise and left in a 2013 Hyundai. The Kohl's employee obtained the license plate number and contacted Loss Prevention. The employee had observed Bautista place some of the items in the cart and knew they were not purchased. Video surveillance confirmed Bautista did not purchase any of the items in the cart as she claimed.

After investigation the incident and determining the suspect resided in Ceres Manteca Police contacted the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department and arrested her later that night. Located in the suspect’s vehicle was the stolen merchandise from Kohl's. She was booked for felony charges of grand theft and violating her probation. The suspect was on active probation in San Mateo County for grand theft.

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To contact reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.