A mother of eight was tragically killed after confronting drug dealers in Oakland, California, who were allegedly selling marijuana to her children. Maria Ramos, 33, was shot and killed after she confronted the teenage dealers on August 7.
Ramos was visiting her mother, Blanca Velasco, with her children when two of her kids were reportedly sold marijuana pipes by the dealers, according to the Daily Mail. Outraged, Ramos and Velasco chased the teens by car to confront them, as reported by KTVU.
Police have identified three suspects in connection with the murder: two minors and 19-year-old Isaiah Gomez. All three have been taken into custody. Authorities believe that a 16-year-old boy was the shooter. He is currently being held at Alameda County Juvenile Hall. Gomez, who pleaded not guilty, has been released on his own recognizance and is wearing an ankle monitor.
Surveillance footage shows Ramos catching up to the drug dealers’ car and exiting her vehicle. As she approached, the occupants of the other car opened fire. Ramos attempted to escape the gunfire but was shot. It is unclear whether she used pepper spray during the confrontation, and this detail is still under investigation.
“I just saw her taking off, and then I heard the bang,” Velasco recounted to reporters. “I pressed on the gas to put my car in front of theirs to shield my daughter. I saw my daughter going down, but I thought she was just taking cover.”
Velasco described how she saw a teenage boy in the backseat of the other car pointing a gun at her, prompting her to speed away before losing the car on the road. When she returned to the scene, she found Ramos lying on the street, gravely injured. “I left my car there and ran to her. I was holding her in my arms,” Velasco said.
“I saw all the blood coming out and started rubbing her, telling her, ‘Breathe. We still need you. You have eight kids that still need you.’ She started breathing slowly through her nose, and that’s when the police arrived.” Despite emergency first-aid efforts by Oakland police, Ramos was pronounced dead from at least one gunshot wound.