The Ledger Dispatch was there when Sheriff deputies and CHP officers arrested the alleged shooter in Jackson Rancheria attack, 19-year-old Gilbert Zaragoza. Photo by: Bill Lavallie Video footage from the Jackson Rancheria Casino shows that actual shooting taking place, with the shooter stretching his arm out to fire at victims just feet away. Photo by: Courtesy to the Ledger Dispatch Gilbert Zaragoza

The impact of gangs operating in Amador County took a sudden and shocking turn at 5 a.m. yesterday morning, when a confrontation at the Jackson Rancheria Casino led to one teenager getting shot in the neck and another getting shot in the face.

The Amador County Sheriff's Office learned of the gun play almost immediately after it happened. Deputies rushed to the scene and discovered two young, Hispanic men bleeding amidst the slot machines and lights. Each had been hit with pistol fire at close range.

Law enforcement officers from around Amador converged on the Rancheria to quickly set up a perimeter. The entire gaming facility was then evacuated as the sheriff's SWAT cleared the parking structure. The heavily-armed team members, along with deputies and detectives, began searching every vehicle on the grounds. They carefully combed the area where witnesses had observed the shooter and connected suspects fleeing.

Eventually, four suspects were netted between two parked cars. As the cuffs were being slapped on those individuals, a bystander reported seeing two suspicious males coming out of the brushy, wooded area near Dalton Road. A California Highway Patrol officer was in position to apprehend them while sheriff's deputies raced to the scene.

Using surveillance video of the actual shooting, detectives confirmed that one of the two suspects coming out of the brush was the trigger man. That shooter, 19-year-old Gilbert Zaragoza, has now been identified by authorities. Sheriff's personnel have also located Zaragoza's gun, a 22. caliber revolver.

Amador County Undersheriff Jim Wegner stated that all parties involved in the confrontation were from Stockton and had known associations with the violent street gangs the Nortenos, and the Surenos. The groups are deadly rivals in California's gang culture. It's still unclear which side fired during the clash. Since December, the Ione Police Department and the Jackson Police Department have both arrested alleged members the Nortenos for various felonies - all individuals who live in Amador County.

The two victims in today shooting were medi-flighted to trauma centers in the Central Valley. They are reportedly in stable condition. The alleged shooter is being held at Amador County Jail for attempted murder without bail.

Having worked all day at the crime scene, Wegner told the Ledger Dispatch that he appreciated assistance on the perimeter from the CHP, Jackson PD and Sutter Creek PD. He also praised the Rancheria's security officers for their efforts. "Their security did a really good job of helping us," the undersheriff said late Sunday afternoon. "They got surveillance images to us right away and provided important information to help our detectives make this arrest."