On January 4, 2023, 20-year-old Nicholas Nicky Tiefer of Vista was shot in San Marcos near the 1100 block of Borden Road. Deputies found him in the passenger seat of a vehicle with a gunshot wound to the neck; he was airlifted to a hospital, placed on life support, and pronounced dead on January 7, 2023. A second victim, 19-year-old Jesus Garcia of San Marcos, was found near the entrance of a nearby park with gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the hospital the day of the shooting.

Both Tiefer and Garcia were graduates of San Marcos High School and known to be friends. Investigators say the meeting appears to have been arranged for the illegal sale of vape products and that the arrested juvenile suspects did not personally know the victims. By early February 2023 two juvenile suspects — a 17-year-old arrested in Riverside and a 15-year-old arrested in Oceanside — were booked on two counts of murder. The exact motive and full circumstances remain under investigation.

Family and friends remember Tiefer as a beloved son, brother, friend and an all-star high school football player; a GoFundMe was set up to help with medical and memorial expenses. If anyone has information about the January 4 shooting, contact the Sheriff’s Homicide Unit or Crime Stoppers anonymously.