On June 26, 2023, at about 12:01 a.m., deputies responded to a reported shooting in the 1800 block of Bay Meadow Drive in Wasco, California. They found 29-year-old Jose Eduardo Lopez Delgadillo suffering fatal gunshot wounds; he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators later arrested 20-year-old Cesar Zarate-Hernandez on August 18, 2023, on suspicion of murder in connection with Delgadillo’s death, but the Kern County District Attorney declined to file charges on August 15, 2023, citing insufficient evidence, and Zarate-Hernandez was released while the Sheriff’s Office continued the investigation. No additional arrests have been reported and the investigation remains open.

Anyone who has information about Delgadillo’s death is asked to contact the Kern County Sheriff’s Office or the Secret Witness Hotline.