Arrests in Fremont Fatal Shooting

A Fremont homicide case that had been sitting unresolved since early February just moved in a big way. Police say two men tied to the fatal shooting were arrested after a separate encounter in Hayward on April 4. That matters because this was Fremont’s second homicide of 2026 — and until now, the public side of the case had barely moved. ### What happened in Fremont? The shooting happened on February 3, 2026, at about 4:19 p.m., near Central Avenue and Joseph Street in Fremont’s Centerville area. Police got multiple 911 calls, arrived within minutes, found one victim on the ground, and tried trauma care at the scene. The victim later died. Detectives from Fremont’s Crimes Against Persons Unit took over that same day. ### Who got arrested? The two men police named are Kaleb Soto, 19, and Ricardo Duran, 42. Fremont police say both were booked on suspicion of homicide. The public release tied them directly to the February killing, but it did not name the victim or spell out each suspect’s exact alleged role in the shooting. That usually means investigators think they have enough for an arrest, but the charging details may still come later in court. (fremontpolice.gov) ### How did Hayward get involved? Turns out this case broke open because of something much smaller. Hayward police were dealing with suspected trespassers on April 4 when they recognized two of the people they were detaining as persons of interest in the Fremont homicide investigation. That kind of crossover happens more than people think — one city’s routine call becomes another city’s big break. In this case, a trespassing detention appears to have handed Fremont detectives the opening they needed. (sfgate.com) ### Why is the timing important? There was about a two-month gap between the shooting and the arrests. That tells you this probably was not a case where officers found the suspects right away at the scene. Instead, detectives were likely building the case in the background — sorting witness accounts, video, phone data, or other leads — until the Hayward contact helped close the loop. The key point is that the arrests happened on April 4, and police publicly described them on May 7. (sfgate.com) ### Why hasn’t police said more? Because homicide investigations stay tight even after arrests. Fremont police still have not released the victim’s name in the material tied to this update, and they are still asking for witnesses or tips. That usually means detectives believe there may be more evidence out there, or they want to strengthen the case before prosecutors move further. (fremontpolice.gov) ### Why does “second homicide of 2026” matter? It gives the case weight inside the city’s broader crime picture. Fremont is not announcing an isolated shooting investigation here — it is talking about one of the city’s earliest homicides of the year. The first homicide of 2026, from January 3, was a separate domestic shooting case on Mowry Avenue. So this February killing was part of a grim start to the year, and an arrest in the case matters beyond one block in Centerville. (fremontpolice.gov) ### What happens next? The next real checkpoint is charging and court proceedings. An arrest on suspicion of homicide is not the same thing as a conviction, and the public record usually gets much clearer once prosecutors file charges and court documents lay out the theory of the case. For now, police are still asking anyone with information to come forward. (fremontpolice.gov) ### Bottom line Basically, this is a stalled homicide case that got a sudden push from an unrelated police contact in a neighboring city. Fremont now has two named suspects in custody. But the story is not finished yet — the why, the relationship between the men, and the victim’s identity are still the missing pieces. (fremontpolice.gov)