Arrests in Fremont Fatal Shooting

A Fremont homicide case that had been sitting unresolved since early February finally moved this week. Police said two men — Kaleb Soto, 19, and Ricardo Duran, 42 — were arrested in connection with the fatal shooting that killed Fernando Campos-Diaz near Central Avenue and Joseph Street on February 3. The big turn is that Fremont detectives did not find them through some dramatic raid. They got the break because Hayward officers were handling a trespassing call. (fremontpolice.gov) ### What happened in Fremont? The shooting happened at about 4:19 p.m. on February 3, 2026, near Central Avenue and Joseph Street. Fremont officers responded to multiple 911 calls, found a victim on the ground, and tried trauma care, but the victim died from his injuries. Police later identified him as Fernando Campos-Diaz. The killing became Fremont’s second homicide of 2026. ### Who got arrested? Fremont police named the suspects as Kaleb Soto, 19, and Ricardo Duran, 42. (fremontpolice.gov) Police said both men were later booked on warrants for homicide under California Penal Code 187. News reports tied them to the case weeks earlier, but the department’s update on May 7 is the clearest official statement that the investigation had produced arrests. ### Why did a trespassing call matter? This is the part that makes the story feel almost absurd. (fremontpolice.gov) On April 4, Hayward officers responded to a trespassing call and detained people involved in that incident. During that detention, officers recognized Soto and Duran as people of interest in the Fremont homicide investigation. Fremont detectives then took custody of both men. Basically, a low-level call in a neighboring city cracked open a murder case. ### What do court records add? (fremontpolice.gov) Court details reported earlier filled in a possible motive and sequence, though those details go beyond what Fremont police put in their press release. Those records say Campos-Diaz was near a 7-Eleven when a confrontation broke out between people linked to rival Norteño subsets. The reports say Duran told others to get a gun after his side started losing a fight, and Soto then chased Campos-Diaz and shot him as he ran. Those are prosecution allegations, not proven facts. ### Why are the ages notable? The age gap jumps out. One suspect is 19. The other is 42. That suggests police are not describing a random one-on-one dispute that spiraled. They appear to be looking at a group dynamic with older and younger participants, which lines up with the gang-related allegations mentioned in later reporting. Soto also faced an allegation of personal firearm use in those reports. ### What changed this week? The main change is official confirmation. (patch.com) Fremont police publicly said detectives had identified the subjects involved and that both suspects were arrested after the Hayward encounter. Before that, the case was mostly a bare homicide notice plus later court-reporting scraps. Now there is a clean timeline — shooting on February 3, detention in Hayward on April 4, public arrest update on May 7. ### What still is not clear? Police are still asking for witnesses and tips, which usually means detectives think more people may know what happened than have talked. (fremontpolice.gov) The public update also does not spell out charging status beyond the homicide warrants, and it does not explain whether prosecutors will pursue gang enhancements. So the arrests matter, but they are not the end of the case. ### Bottom line? This is a murder case that turned on recognition, not luck alone. (fremontpolice.gov) Fremont detectives had already developed suspects, but the break came when Hayward officers spotted them during an unrelated trespassing call. That changed the case from an open homicide into a prosecution story — and gave Fremont its first real movement in one of the city’s deadliest investigations of the year.