A May 6 road rage shooting that killed a 38-year-old San Jose man was committed to further the conduct of a street gang, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office.
Prosecutors have charged Fidadelfo Silva Ortiz, 17, as an adult with murder in the fatal shooting of Phuoc Hong Long Lam in East San Jose and Daniel Alejandro Reyes, 23, as an accessory to murder, prosecutors said in a complaint filed May 29 in Superior Court.
Ortiz and Reyes are also charged with felony participation in a criminal street gang during the commission of Lam's murder.
Prosecutors further attached two special circumstance allegations against Ortiz alleging he used a firearm to kill Lam and committed the crime to benefit or promote a street gang.
Reyes, in addition to the felony accessory charge of harboring or assisting the murder suspect Ortiz, also had a felony gang enhancement added to his case.
At about 10:20 a.m. on May 6, Lam was shot during a traffic dispute in the area of Senter Road and Baltic Way several blocks southeast of Tully Road and died later at a hospital, according to San Jose police.
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Police said that Lam had no known link to either Ortiz or Reyes.
At first, police were unable to locate the suspects, who were believed to have fled in a car that witnesses said looked like a 2000 silver Volkswagen Jetta or a similar car.
On May 19, Reyes was captured in Tracy and booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail. Four days later, Ortiz was apprehended in Oakdale and booked into the county juvenile hall.
Ortiz and Reyes are both being held in county jail without bail.
They are expected to appear in court together on July 22.
Judge Griffin Bonini on May 29 agreed to a request by San Jose police Detective Ken Tran to seal the statement of facts in the homicide case.
Tran, in a statement arguing in favor of sealing the facts, said that releasing the case information to the public "would inhibit the further investigation of possible co-conspirators."
The detective also said releasing it would hinder the successful investigation into the case and could result in the destruction of valuable evidence.
Tran said that it could also jeopardize the safety of witnesses because "violent homicide suspects and their associates are known to intimidate, threaten and possibly harm witnesses."
The continuing probe into Lam's murder may reveal additional crimes and witnesses, Tran stated.
According to the complaint, Ortiz and Reyes lived in the same mobile home park at 2580 Senter Road, to which the entry street is Baltic Way, which is close to where the shooting happened.
Lam, a bus driver, left behind a wife, who can barely speak English and has no family in the United States, and boys aged 4 and 7, one with severe autism.
San Jose police have launched a fundraising campaign to help his family with childcare and other expenses.
