Female Employee, 39, Fatally Shot At Domino's Pizza In San Bernardino
SAN BERNARDINO (CBSLA.com) — A female employee was fatally shot Wednesday at a Domino's Pizza restaurant in San Bernardino.
The shooting took place around 11:38 a.m. in the 1600 block of East Highland Avenue.
Police say murder suspect is armed and dangerous
San Bernardino Police Lieutenant Mike Madden says the woman and a man believed to be her ex-boyfriend got into an argument, the man pulled a handgun and shot the woman several times, reported KNX 1070's Mike Landa.
The woman, who was the manager of the business, was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
CBS2's Adrianna Weingold identified the victim as 39-year-old Nelly Chi Kantun of Highland.
Police told Weingold there was evidence of a violent fight both inside and outside the store.
The suspect -- now identified as 55-year-old Pedro Enrique Duquesne of San Bernardino -- fled the scene. He has been taken into custody.
Police said Duquesne admitted to the murder. No weapon was found.
Kantun was the only employee inside the restaurant at the time, according to officials. Police said there were no customers in the store.
Weingold spoke to Kybree Edmond, an armed security guard at a nearby Walgreens who heard the shots.
"I just heard three shots, bang-bang-bang. It was very loud. The first shot I thought maybe we dropped a pallet in the back. Then I knew it was gunshots," said Edmond.
He put the store on lock down and then ran to help the victim who was, by this time, outside the store.
"She was in a puddle of blood," Edmond said, "she was trying to fight for her life, gasping for air. That's somebody's mom, or auntie or grandmother. You know, it was sad.
KCAL9's Stacey Butler said Kantun is the mother of three grown children.
She spoke to many of Kantun's friends who said she feared her boyfriend would get violent if and when she tried to leave him.
"She was a wonderful person," remembers friend Ralph Lardizabal. "She always had a smile, a wonderful person, very nice. We loved her."
"He was a jealous boyfriend. There had been problems in the past. I think she was trying to leave him," said another friend, "and he couldn't deal with it. And this is how he dealt with it."
Most friends were in shock that his violence could escalate to this level.
"I never thought this could happen. The guy took it to the extreme," said friend Maria Palacio.
The Domino's corporate office issued the following statement, "We are shocked and horrified by what took place in San Bernardino. The local franchise owner is cooperating with authorities, and will assist in any way possible to get to the bottom of what took place. Our hearts and thoughts are with the victim and families involved."
