A months-long, multi-agency investigation into the February shooting death of 29-year-old Luis Terrazas has resulted in the arrest of three teenagers, Santa Barbara police announced.
Detectives coordinated with Ventura authorities to serve search and arrest warrants in the cities of Ventura, Camarillo, and Santa Barbara on Thursday. Taken into custody were 18-year-old Jimmy Mora of Ventura, 19-year-old Jorge Hurtado of Camarillo, and an unidentified juvenile.
Mora and Hurtado were both charged with first-degree murder. The juvenile was charged with assault with a deadly weapon for the benefit of a criminal street gang.
“The operation highlights the strong partnerships and collaborative efforts among local law enforcement agencies and demonstrates a shared commitment to public safety and the pursuit of justice for the victims and their families,” the Santa Barbara Police Department said in a press statement.
The investigation remains active and ongoing, and anyone with information on the case is encouraged to call the department at (805) 897-2372.
Terrazas was shot at approximately 1:30 a.m. on February 20 at Bohnett Park on the city’s Westside. Responding officers found him with a single gunshot wound and attempted life-saving measures, but he was pronounced dead soon after arriving at Cottage Hospital.
Terrazas’s killing came six months after he was charged in connection with a violent knife brawl that broke out on State Street during a Fiesta weekend. The incident left 30-year-old Anthony Bisquera-Hartley dead and two others seriously injured.
Terrazas was originally accused of attempted murder, but when video evidence emerged that showed Bisquera-Hartley was the aggressor, the charge was dropped.
A memorial of flowers and candles was erected on San Pascual Street near Bohnett Park after Terrazas’s death. Family members remembered him as someone who “had a big heart and a presence that made people feel safe, supported, and valued.”
He left behind “his beloved son, his loving mother, and his siblings who are now facing the unimaginable pain of losing him.”
Thursday’s arrests followed developments in two other high-profile gang homicides that roiled Santa Barbara. Last week, the Carpinteria gang members who were convicted in the 2021 shooting deaths of Angel Castillo, 17, and Omar Montiel-Hernandez, 18, were sentenced to lifetime prison terms.
And Sheriff’s detectives arrested a fifth and final suspect, a 16-year-old juvenile, in the fatal 2025 stabbing of 17-year-old Damien Hernandez near San Marcos High School. Four other suspects had already been arrested and charged with murder, conspiracy, and gang enhancements.
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