2 Young Men Arrested on Suspicion of Assaulting 2 People in Palm Desert

PALM DESERT (CNS) – Two young men were arrested on suspicion of assaulting two people in Palm Desert, one of whom sustained a gunshot wound to his face, authorities said Wednesday.

Cathedral City residents Jorge Arturo Morales, 18, and Jaden Xavier Garcia, 19, were arrested Tuesday morning on suspicion of conspiracy, according to Sgt. Daniel Milbrandt of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. Additionally, Morales was booked on suspicion of attempted murder and stalking, and Garcia on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.

Deputies responded at around 2:50 a.m. Tuesday to the 45300 block of Garden Square in Palm Desert to a report of an assault with a deadly weapon, according to Milbrandt. Two victims were followed allegedly by Morales and Garcia, whom they both knew.

"One victim was struck multiple times and sustained a single gunshot wound to his face," Milbrandt said in a statement. "He was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The other victim, who was uninjured, had allegedly been stalked by Morales for several weeks before the assault."

Morales and Garcia were apprehended in the 68700 block of 33rd Avenue in Cathedral City by Palm Desert sheriff’s station deputies, the Palm Desert Investigations Bureau, the Palm Desert Burglary Suppression Unit and the Desert Regional SWAT after allegedly attempting to flee a residence, according to Milbrandt.

Morales was being held at the John J. Benoit Detention Center in Indio on $1 million bail. Garcia was being held at the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Banning on $25,000 bail.

Anyone with additional information on the assault with a deadly weapon was asked to call Investigator Lugo at 760-836-1600.

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