A 43-year-old California man has been charged with two counts of murder after fatally shooting his ex-wife and her new boyfriend in Dinuba. Miguel Angel Saldana allegedly lost his temper during a confrontation at a home on Tuesday evening. Dinuba Police Chief Abel Iriarte described the incident as a crime of passion.
Miguel Angel Saldana, 43, was arrested this week by the Dinuba Police Department following the shooting deaths of 39-year-old Irai Torres, his ex-wife, and her 51-year-old boyfriend, Jose Medina. The incident occurred at 5:10 p.m. on Tuesday at a home in Dinuba, located in California's Central Valley. Multiple 911 calls reported the shooting, and officers found Torres and Medina dead upon arrival. Saldana and Torres shared a child, police said. Saldana fled the scene in a white Toyota truck to his home in nearby Reedley, where he switched vehicles before returning to Dinuba. A few hours later, officers tracked him down near the Dinuba Police Department and arrested him without incident. He was booked into jail without bail. On Wednesday, authorities formally charged Saldana with two counts of murder, along with special allegations for multiple murders, discharging a firearm, planning the crime, and violent conduct. He pleaded not guilty on Thursday and is scheduled to appear in court again on May 4. Dinuba Police Chief Abel Iriarte told local NBC and CBS affiliate KSEE/KPGE that Saldana 'lost [his] temper' during an argument, calling it 'a crime of passion' that resulted in a 'travesty.' The investigation remains ongoing.