Orange: Man Found Shot Dead By Officers Responding To Disturbance, Suspect Arrested

11.28.2021 | 12:00 AM | ORANGE – A man was found shot to death on a sidewalk outside an apartment community prompting a homicide investigation that resulted in the arrest of one man, early Sunday morning.

Officers found the male victim, later identified as 39-year-old Michael Tovar, of Anaheim, while responding to reports of a disturbance outside an apartment located in the 2000 block of East Fairway Drive around midnight.

Firefighter paramedics responded to attempt to revive Tovar, who had sustained a single gunshot wound, but ultimately pronounced him victim deceased on scene.

21-year-old Joseph Ruelas. Photo by Orange Police Department.

Homicide detective responded to the scene to investigate the fatal shooting and identified 21-year-old Joseph Ruelas, of Santa Ana, as the suspected shooter.

Ruelas was located around 4:00 PM on Sunday booked into the Orange County Jail on murder charges.

No suspect motive behind the shooting was immediately available.

Anyone with information regarding the incident is urged to contact Detective Moss by calling (714) 744-7455.

Anonymous tips can be submitted through the Orange County Crime Stoppers by calling (855) TIP-OCCS or by visiting their website at www.occrimestoppers.org.

Miles Madison

Miles started reporting breaking news in 2015 and has been providing high-quality news video and timely reports from the Orange County area ever since. Combining his experience as a seasoned photojournalist, radio operator and sleuth, Miles provides unrivaled multimedia news reports.