By Marlene Lenthang -
NBC News
A man shot and killed his grandmother and his father's girlfriend this weekend in California while the family was opening Christmas presents, local authorities reported Monday.
Fresno County police officers found the victims after responding to
an alert call about shooting
at a home in the 17000 block of Goodfellow Avenue in the city of Reedley around 1:45 p.m. on December 25.
Authorities said they learned through interviews that the suspect, identified as 23-year-old Austin Álvarez, came to the home
during the Christmas gift exchange
, opened fire and fatally hit Magdalena Álvarez, his 58-year-old grandmother. ;
and Meisa Rashid, his father's girlfriend, 39 years old.
The suspect in the shooting is 23 years old.
Fresno County Sheriff's Office.
Alvarez was booked into the Fresno County Jail on two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, on a $ 2.5 million bond.
It is not clear if he has a lawyer.
"As Alvarez was leaving the home, he realized that his father was in a parked vehicle," the Fresno Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
"
He fired in his direction
but missed him."
He then fled the scene in a GMC truck.
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A police patrol located Alvarez near the intersection of American and Anchor avenues in the city of Orange Cove, about 10 miles from the scene of the shooting, according to the Sheriff's office.
The authorities added that so far no reason has been established for what happened and that
the investigation is ongoing
.
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Anyone with additional information on this case can contact Detective Richard Antúnez at 559-600-8221 or Valley Crime Stoppers at 559-498-7867 or online at www.valleycrimestoppers.org.