A convicted felon who shot at two men in a Moreno Valley strip mall pleaded guilty Wednesday to shooting at an inhabited building.
Michael Nikita Diggins II, 43, of Moreno Valley admitted the felony offense under a plea agreement with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office. In exchange for his admission, prosecutors agreed to drop two counts of firearm assault and a charge of being a felon in possession of a gun.
Superior Court Judge Gail O’Rane scheduled a sentencing hearing for Aug. 2 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
Diggins is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta.
According to sheriff’s Sgt. James Merrill, early on the morning of July 13, patrol deputies were alerted to gunshots behind a strip mall near the intersection of Iris Avenue and Lasselle Street, prompting them to investigate.
Merrill said the deputies “located evidence of a shooting” behind two businesses, but the gunman was nowhere in sight.
“Witnesses reported a vehicle stopped in the street near a bus stop, and (the driver) started firing a handgun,” the sergeant said.
Court documents identified two men who were targeted by the gunman, identified as “R.R.” and John Doe.
A possible motive was not disclosed.
Detectives soon developed leads pointing to Diggins as the shooter, culminating in an arrest warrant being served on the defendant at a property on Badger Springs Trail, where he was taken into custody without incident a few hours later, Merrill said.
Court records show Diggins has prior convictions out of Los Angeles County, but they weren’t specified.