Revenge blamed in Winnemucca bar shootings

WINNEMUCCA -- A man who shot and killed two brothers in a bar Sunday might have been angry over delays in the trial of the men accused of shooting his own family member last year, authorities said.

Ernesto Villagomez, 30, killed Jose and Margarito Torres early Sunday at the Players Bar and Grill, authorities said. Villagomez was then shot and killed by a patron who had a concealed weapons permit.

Margarito Torres, 19, and another man are accused of shooting a member of Villagomez's family in July. Mario Villagomez was left paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair.

Margarito Torres and Jose Jesus Castellano-Moreno were to stand trial in January for the shooting, but the court proceeding was delayed.

"It appears from what we can tell that they didn't feel this was moving along fast enough through the criminal justice system, and they probably wouldn't get justice unless they got it themselves," said Russell Smith, Humboldt County district attorney.

There have been several confrontations between the Villagomez and Torres families in recent months, authorities said.

"We're going to try to keep the peace because we don't think this is over," Smith told the Reno Gazette-Journal.

He said the families have been feuding for years.

After the July shooting, Smith said, he had members of both families in his office, and both said their lives were being threatened.

"We were trying constantly to get them to de-escalate and stay away from events where the other families were involved," he said. "It seemed to fall on deaf ears."