By F. Scott Faulkner
May 27, 2025 – Ventura County, CA.
A tragic shooting in January has led to the arrest of an 18-year-old Simi Valley man accused of
furnishing a firearm to a juvenile who later died by suicide.
According to Ventura County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Adam Garnier, deputies
attached to VCSD Headquarters responded in January 2025 to a report of “a suicidal subject” in
the unincorporated area of Thousand Oaks.
When they arrived at the scene, patrol units discovered “a juvenile male suffering from a single gunshot wound.”
The teen was immediately transported to Los Robles Medical Center, where he was later pronounced dead.
The VCSD Major Crimes Bureau and the Gun Violence Reduction Program personnel promptly
launched an investigation into how the juvenile had obtained the firearm.
Over the course of the ensuing months, investigators “developed evidence” pointing to Michael Paz, 18, of Simi Valley,
as the individual “who sold or otherwise provided” the gun to the minor.
On May 23, 2025, detectives located Paz in Thousand Oaks, took him into custody without
incident.
Paz was booked on charges of unlawful transfer of a firearm, child endangerment, and the sale or transfer of a firearm to a
minor. Paz remains in custody on an unspecified bail hold.
