Aaron Higgins, 51, died in the hospital from his injuries 10 days after being knocked to the ground by John Vincent
VISALIA – A Visalia man who was originally wanted for battery has now been arrested for murder.
At about 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 20, homicide detectives with the Visalia Police Department arrested 50-year-old John Vincent in connection with an assault 10 days earlier. Just after 1:17 a.m. on Oct. 10, VPD officers were dispatched to the 5500 block of W. Sunnyside Drive for a report of a battery. Officers arrived to find Aaron Higgins, 51, unconscious. Higgins was transported to Kaweah Health Medical Center where he was listed in critical but stable condition. His attacker had fled the scene.
During the investigation, detectives learned Vincent was intoxicated and was involved in an argument with the Higgins on Sunnyside Drive. During the argument, Vincent allegedly punched the victim knocking him to the ground before fleeing the area. Police confirmed the two individuals knew each other but would not comment on motive for the altercation.
Higgins succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at 5 p.m. on Oct. 20. Shortly thereafter, detectives arrested Vincent without incident and booked him on charges of homicide.
Visalia Police Log
Thursday, Oct. 21
At 5:08 p.m., Visalia Police Department conducted a traffic stop for a vehicle code violation on a vehicle driven by Mario Luevanos, 26. He was found to have active warrants for his arrest and his license was suspended. While the officers were preparing to tow the vehicle, they located two non-serialized and unregistered weapons. One was an AR-15 rifle and the other was a pistol. They also located high-capacity magazines and ammunition for both in the vehicle. The pistol had a selector switch to turn it into a fully automatic weapon. He was booked for his warrants and numerous firearm violations.
Friday, Oct. 15
At approximately 11 p.m., officers were dispatched to a report of shots fired at Main and Locust in Visalia. Upon arrival, officers discovered that two individuals had been struck by gunfire and were transported to Kaweah Health Medical Center for treatment. After interviewing several witnesses in the area, violent crimes detectives have determined that a dark colored, black or gray, sedan was parked along the east curb of Locust just north of Main Street prior to the shooting. Following the shooting, the suspect vehicle fled southbound on Locust Street at a high rate of speed. Additionally, witnesses described seeing two males in hooded sweatshirts standing next to this vehicle at the time of the shooting. When the shooting started, these two males fled away from the vehicle eastbound on Main.
Detectives are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the dark colored sedan involved in this shooting and anyone associated with this vehicle. Anyone with information about this crime is urged to contact Detective Miguel Leon at 559-713-4722. Those individuals wishing to remain anonymous can contact the Anonymous Tip-Line at 559-713-4738.
