Santa Maria brothers Victoriano and Gabriel Feliciano charged with murder of Paulina Lopez Gonzalez
Andrew Gillies
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. – On Tuesday, Victoriano Lopez Feliciano and Gabriel Victoriano Lopez Feliciano were charged with the murder of Paulina Lopez Gonzalez in connection with an Aug. 9, 2025, shooting in Santa Maria.
According to the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office, Victoriano Feliciano also faces special allegations that he personally and intentionally discharged a firearm causing death, personally used a firearm, and committed the crime while lying in wait.
The District Attorney’s Office also charged Victoriano Feliciano with unlawful sex with a child under the age of 16 in connection with a separate case involving a sexual assault survivor identified only as Jane Doe.
Gabriel Feliciano has also been charged with the murder of Paulina Lopez Gonzalez and faces the special allegation of lying in wait, prosecutors said.
The charges stem from an Aug. 9 incident in which Santa Maria police responded to the 1200 block of West Main Street around 11:02 p.m. for a reported shooting. Officers arrived to find a woman, later identified as Lopez Gonzalez, with life-threatening injuries. She was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Santa Maria Police detectives, with assistance from the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, arrested the brothers the following evening in Taft, in western Kern County. They were taken into custody without incident.
Both men are scheduled to return to court for a continuation of their arraignment on Aug. 25. They are being held at the North County Branch Jail without bail, according to the District Attorney’s Office.