A man who was arrested in Huntington Beach this week has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a 36-year-old man during an attempted robbery in Long Beach earlier this month, authorities said.
After an hours-long standoff on Tuesday, Oct. 21, Felipe Zermeno Ramirez, 27, was taken into custody in connection with the death of Thomas Mello, a Long Beach resident shot in the chest in the 200 block of Falcon Avenue in the early morning hours of Oct. 12, according to police and a medical examiner’s report.
Last week, police arrested 25-year-old Jose Garcia-Linares, who they said was homeless, in the 700 block of Orange Avenue.
Police announced the latest arrest on Thursday, Oct. 23. Ramirez also faces charges of second-degree robbery, three counts of attempted second-degree robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery, felon in possession of a firearm, and driving a vehicle without consent, court records show.
Garcia-Linares faces the same charges except felon in possession of a firearm, court records show. He faces an additional charge of evading a peace officer.
In a criminal complaint filed by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Garcia-Linares and Ramirez were accused of coming up with a plan on Oct. 10 to commit robberies while at a bar in Carson.
Two days later, the two then allegedly armed themselves with handguns and put on face masks and robbed a man at gunpoint near an apartment building in the 100 block of West Ninth Street, according to the complaint.
They then drove to Second Street and Falcon Avenue, where they are accused of confronting Mello and two other men, pointing guns at them and demanding their property before the shooting, the complaint says.
Residents in Huntington Beach on Tuesday told OnScene TV, a freelance news organization that sometimes works with the Southern California News Group, that Long Beach police and SWAT descended into the 4900 block of Pearce Drive Tuesday afternoon.
“They said they had an arrest warrant,” said Leai Haney, a neighbor. “He didn’t come out for many many hours and the SWAT team came over to my house and told me to close my windows and my doors because they were going to use some chemicals and didn’t want me or my son to be affected.”
Officers eventually did used tear gas, Haney said. The suspect was seen in handcuffs at about 6 p.m.
CBS LA, citing footage from its helicopter, said police let loose a K-9 into the home through a shattered back door minutes before the suspect was taken into custody. The man was seen on surveillance footage obtained by OnScene TV hopping on his right leg while being helped to a patrol vehicle by officers.
Police have not said how they tied either man to Mello’s murder.
Haney said the suspect did not live in the neighborhood but had been staying with neighbors for the past few days.
Originally Published: October 24, 2025 at 7:54 AM PDT