Santa Barbara Police Department detectives arrested two suspects in connection to the September 2021 drive-by shooting incident on Santa Barbara’s Westside, according to a statement from Public Information Officer Ethan Ragsdale.
The shooting occurred on September 22, 2021, when a 16-year-old was shot in the abdomen with a small-caliber rifle round fired from a car as he walked up San Andres Street. According to authorities, the 16-year-old was not involved in gang activity, and there does not appear to be any motive for the shooting.
During the investigation, detectives were able to learn the identities of both the suspected shooter, 26-year-old Antonio Aguayo, and the driver of the “getaway” car, 22-year-old Nicolas Fairbanks.
Fairbanks was arrested on January 11 and faces charges for attempted murder (felony), gang enhancement (felony), firearm enhancement (felony), and using a firearm causing great bodily injury (felony). While serving the warrant, police seized a rifle suspected to be the same one used in the shooting.
Santa Barbara Sheriff’s deputies came into contact with Aguayo — who had recently been discharged from California State Parole on an unrelated matter — and took him into custody when it was found he had an outstanding warrant for the shooting. He was transferred to Santa Barbara Police Department detectives and booked for the same charges as Fairbanks. Both are being held on $1,100,000 bail. According to Ragsdale, both Fairbanks and Aguayo are known members of a local criminal street gang.
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