A 2017 Nissan Maxima linked to the deadly Del Norte Plaza shooting was recovered in Vallejo as two other suspects remained at large.
EL CERRITO, CA — Police recovered a car tied to Sunday’s fatal shooting at Del Norte Plaza and arrested an 18-year-old Richmond man Monday as investigators continued searching for the suspected shooter and getaway driver, authorities said.
The arrest and recovery of the gray 2017 Nissan Maxima marked the first major developments in the homicide investigation that began shortly after noon Aug. 23. Police identified the arrested man as Jacari Talifero Gibson of Richmond and said he was booked on suspicion of murder and robbery. Authorities have not announced the names of the two other people they are seeking. The victim’s identity also had not been officially released, though relatives told local news outlets he was a 21-year-old man from Oakland.
El Cerrito police received the first report of gunfire at about 12:17 p.m. Sunday in the parking lot of Del Norte Plaza, 11299 San Pablo Ave. Officers from El Cerrito, Kensington and Richmond responded and found a young man with gunshot wounds near Los Moles Restaurant. Officers tried to provide medical aid, but the victim died at the scene. Witnesses told investigators that two men had confronted the victim near his car before the shooting. Police initially said the suspects escaped in a dark-colored sedan. As detectives reviewed surveillance footage and gathered witness statements, they narrowed the description to a gray Nissan Maxima from model year 2016 or newer. Police released an image of the vehicle Sunday night in an effort to identify it and the people using it.
Investigators later determined the car was a 2017 Nissan Maxima. Surveillance cameras around the shopping center captured the vehicle but did not provide a readable license plate, according to police. Detectives worked with other law enforcement agencies and used automated license plate reader information to identify a possible plate for the Maxima. Authorities then placed the vehicle on a statewide alert list. Police said the car was recovered Monday night in Vallejo. Officials have not publicly explained who owned the Nissan, how long it had been in Vallejo or what evidence investigators found inside. Police also have not disclosed whether a firearm connected to the shooting has been recovered. The vehicle is expected to remain an important piece of physical evidence as detectives examine its connection to the people involved.
The suspects’ route after the shooting also became clearer as police reviewed additional information. Early accounts said the dark sedan left the plaza along South 56th Street. A later police update said the vehicle traveled north on South 56th Street, turned west onto Potrero Avenue and was last seen heading south on South 55th Street from Potrero. Investigators have not said how long the suspects remained together after leaving the shopping center. One person sought by police was described as a young man wearing a black mask and a black North Face puffy jacket. Another was described as a young man wearing a hat and a black Nike jacket. Police have not released names, ages or photographs identifying those two people.
Richmond officers located Gibson shortly before 1:30 p.m. Monday, about a day after the killing, according to police. El Cerrito officers took custody of him, and he was booked into jail on suspicion of murder and robbery. Investigators also searched his residence. Police have not publicly detailed Gibson’s alleged actions during the encounter or explained the evidence they say connects him to the homicide. Authorities separately said the suspected shooter and getaway driver remained outstanding after Gibson’s arrest, indicating detectives believe at least three people may have been involved. An arrest on suspicion of a crime does not amount to a conviction, and prosecutors had not publicly announced the filing of a criminal case or a court schedule in the available police updates.
The shooting unfolded on a Sunday afternoon at a busy commercial area, drawing a large police response and leaving shoppers and nearby workers shaken. Investigators remained in the parking lot for hours as they interviewed witnesses, examined vehicles and collected evidence. Television footage from the scene showed police tape stretched across part of the lot. A bullet hole was visible in the windshield of a red vehicle, and personal items were on the pavement nearby. A woman who worked near the shopping center told KTVU that people with children appeared frightened and hurried out of the restaurant after the gunfire. El Cerrito resident Ghana Bhattarai said the size of the police response alarmed him after living in the area for several years without seeing a similar incident.
A resident who lives across from the plaza told CBS News Bay Area that he heard several shots. “I heard gunshots, maybe four or five of them,” Todd Jalowiec said. Investigators have not publicly confirmed how many shots were fired or how many times the victim was struck. Police also have not announced a motive or described what started the confrontation at the victim’s vehicle. Those unanswered questions remain central to the investigation as detectives compare witness accounts, surveillance recordings, physical evidence and information gathered from the recovered Nissan. Family and friends gathered near the scene Sunday while investigators worked. Relatives declined on-camera interviews but described the victim to local reporters as a 21-year-old Oakland resident with a bright spirit.
The killing was especially notable in El Cerrito because local authorities said it was the city’s first homicide in about three years. Del Norte Plaza sits along the San Pablo Avenue corridor near residential streets and several businesses. The shooting occurred in daylight near a restaurant, bringing officers from three jurisdictions to the scene. Police have not indicated that there is an ongoing threat to shoppers at the plaza or that the shooting was random. Their account instead centers on a confrontation involving the victim and the suspects at his vehicle. What caused that confrontation, whether robbery was the original purpose of the encounter and what role each person played have not been fully described publicly.
Detectives are now working to locate the suspected shooter and getaway driver while processing the Nissan recovered in Vallejo and other evidence from the plaza. Police have not announced additional arrests, formal charges from the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office or a date for Gibson’s first court appearance. Investigators may also continue reviewing footage from cameras around Del Norte Plaza and along the route police believe the Nissan took after the shooting. The use of license plate reader information has already helped investigators move from a general vehicle description to a specific car. Police said the homicide investigation remains active and that additional information will be released as the case develops.
As of Tuesday, Aug. 25, Gibson remained the only publicly identified person arrested in connection with the killing. The recovered 2017 Nissan Maxima was in investigators’ hands, while police continued searching for the two other suspects and working to determine exactly what led to the fatal confrontation at Del Norte Plaza.
Author note: Last updated August 25, 2026.