Investigators say the victim appears to have known at least one person involved in the brief confrontation.
FRESNO, Calif. — Fresno police have identified a 30-year-old man who was shot and killed outside a Starbucks in northwest Fresno, saying the attack followed a short disturbance in the parking lot Sunday evening and was at least partly captured on surveillance video.
The victim, Danilo Rodas, was found with a gunshot wound to the upper body after officers responded at about 5:47 p.m. near Shaw and Dale avenues, according to police. His death made him Fresno’s sixth homicide victim in March and added to a sharp year-over-year rise in killings in the city. Detectives say the shooter has not been identified, and they have not released descriptions of the people or vehicles believed to be tied to the case.
Police said officers from the Northwest Policing District were sent to the area after reports of gunfire in the commercial corridor near the Starbucks, a busy stretch lined with homes, stores and steady weekend traffic. When they arrived, they found Rodas in the parking lot and began aid before emergency crews took over. He was pronounced dead soon afterward. Investigators later said Rodas had walked to the location and came into contact with people he was believed to know. Fresno Police Lt. Brian Valles said the encounter was brief but turned violent in moments. He said Rodas was involved in a disturbance with at least one, and possibly more than one, person before he was shot. Detectives believe several vehicles were also involved in some way, a detail that widened the scope of the investigation beyond a single gunman fleeing on foot.
By Tuesday, detectives were still trying to map out who was in the lot, how many people were present and which vehicle or vehicles may have carried the shooter or witnesses away from the scene. Valles said surveillance video captured portions of what happened, giving investigators a better sense of the timeline even as major questions remained unanswered. Police have not said whether the shooting began as an argument, whether anyone else was armed or whether the victim was specifically targeted before he arrived. They also have not said whether the people Rodas encountered were waiting for him or happened to cross paths with him there. That uncertainty has left detectives asking the public for help while they compare witness accounts, camera footage and other evidence collected from the area. The department has not announced an arrest, named a suspect or released any possible motive.
The killing drew attention in part because of where it happened. The Starbucks sits in a populated section of northwest Fresno, close to neighborhood homes and daily business traffic, and police said the shooting unfolded in broad daylight. The business temporarily shut down after the shooting but reopened the next day. Valles said the crowded setting may also work to investigators’ advantage because more people could have seen something or passed through the area with dash cameras or other video. He said police are often grateful when violent crime happens in a place with more potential witnesses, even while stressing the danger of gunfire so close to homes and customers. The case also landed as Fresno police were already dealing with a stretch of elevated violence. Officials said the city had recorded nine homicides so far this year, compared with four at the same point in 2025, and six killings had occurred during March alone.
That broader context has added pressure to the investigation. Police said extra patrols would be working in the city during what Valles described as a busy week, though he did not tie those deployments solely to this homicide. At this stage, the case remains a homicide investigation with detectives reviewing video, tracing vehicle information and seeking additional witnesses. No court hearing has been announced because no arrest has been made. Detectives typically continue collecting surveillance footage from nearby businesses, reviewing calls for service, testing physical evidence and re-interviewing witnesses as timelines sharpen. In this case, police have publicly confirmed only that Rodas died at the scene area after the shooting, that multiple vehicles may have been involved and that the shooter remains unknown. The next major procedural milestone will likely come when investigators identify a suspect, release a vehicle description or ask prosecutors to review the evidence for possible charges.
On Tuesday, the parking lot had returned to a more familiar rhythm, with customers coming and going as the homicide investigation continued in the background. That contrast between an ordinary weekday routine and the violence from two days earlier underscored how quickly the confrontation unfolded. Police have not described a prolonged altercation or drawn-out gun battle. Instead, they have portrayed the violence as a short encounter that escalated with little warning. For people who live nearby, that has left a scene that is easy to picture: a busy coffee shop, homes a short distance away and gunfire in the late afternoon. For detectives, it means the key may lie in seconds of video, a partial plate number, a witness who noticed a vehicle leaving fast or someone who recognized the people involved before shots were fired.
As of Tuesday night, Fresno police had identified the victim but had not announced any arrests or suspect descriptions. The investigation remains open, with the next major step expected to be additional evidence releases or a public update from detectives as they sort through surveillance footage and witness leads.
Author note: Last updated April 1, 2026.