Drive-by suspects face 6 felonies each

Two men allegedly involved in two consecutive drive-by shootings, one in which a woman was injured, appeared in Yuma County Justice Court Tuesday afternoon.

Alex Renteria, 22, and Cesar Covarrubias, 20, face six felony charges each, including four counts of aggravated assault, one count of assisting a criminal street gang and one count of participating in a drive-by shooting. They are allegedly members of the gang Southside Y-Town.

Both requested a court-appointed attorney because they are unemployed and said they could not afford a lawyer.

Justice of the Peace Gregory Stewart set a bond of $500,000 for each man. They were initially held without bond after being arrested Sunday and booked into the Yuma County Detention Center.

If they are able to post bail, they are ordered not to have any contact with the victims, to abide by all laws and to appear at all court dates. Their next appearance is scheduled for Sept. 26 at 4 p.m.

The first drive-by allegedly happened at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday at Fat Harvey's, 303 W. 26th St. According to police, the two men allegedly fired several rounds of ammunition into the air from inside an unspecified vehicle and claimed affiliation with Southside Y-Town, before driving off.

They then returned a short time later and allegedly fired several more rounds of ammunition into a group of four people. A vehicle was struck by the gunfire, and what was believed to be a ricochetting bullet injured a 21-year-old woman. Her wounds were not life-threatening, police said.

The two men then fled the area but were located by police nearby and arrested. The Yuma Police Department's Gang Enforcement Unit encourages anyone with information about this case to call 373-4700, or 78-CRIME to remain anonymous.

Chris McDaniel can be reached at cmcdaniel@yumasun.com or 539-6849.