On the morning of Tuesday, December 23, 2025, law enforcement officers from the Redlands Police Department responded to reports of shots fired at an apartment complex located on Kansas Street in Redlands, California. Upon their arrival at the scene, authorities discovered a male victim who had suffered fatal injuries. The deceased was identified as 36-year-old Aaron Richard Rivera, who was pronounced dead at the location from apparent gunshot wounds.
During the subsequent investigation, detectives uncovered disturbing details regarding the circumstances of the homicide and the safety of other occupants in the home. Police allege that after the shooting occurred, the perpetrator attempted to cause further harm by intentionally leaving the gas burners of the apartment's stove in the "on" position before fleeing the premises. At the time of this act, Rivera's two juvenile children were reportedly asleep inside the residence, though they were not physically injured during the incident.
Witness statements, family accounts, and surveillance footage from the apartment complex helped investigators quickly identify a suspect. The security video reportedly captured a man leaving the scene immediately following the shooting in a silver 2008 Ford Focus. The suspect was identified as Zackary Aaron Brodowski, a 32-year-old resident of Calimesa and the half-brother of the victim.
Later that same day, detectives tracked Brodowski to a residence in the 900 block of California Street in Calimesa. With the assistance of the department's Special Weapons and Tactics team, authorities established surveillance on the location and successfully took Brodowski into custody without incident. A search of the suspect's residence yielded a firearm believed to be the weapon used in the killing, as well as clothing that matched the attire observed in the surveillance footage. Brodowski was subsequently booked into the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga, where he was held without bail on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.
