Gene Ransom, a beloved point guard for the University of California-Berkley’s Golden Bears in the late 1970s, was killed in a fatal freeway shooting on Friday. He was 65.
CBS affiliate KPIX reports California Highway Patrol officers responded to a crash on Interstate 880 in Oakland on Friday evening. Upon arrival, police determined the male victim, Ransom, had suffered a fatal gun shot wound. According to authorities, Ransom was driving when he was shot, causing him to veer his car and crash into a guardrail.
The CHP arrested 25 year-old Juan Angel Garcia of San Francisco on Saturday morning, as he was booked into Alameda County Jail on suspicion of murder. Officials say a motive for the shooting is still under investigation.
“We are shocked to hear the reports that Cal Athletics Hall of Famer Gene Ransom has been identified as a victim in a deadly freeway shooting,” Cal Athletics said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with Gene’s family and friends for this tragic loss. Gene was one of the greatest players in our men’s basketball program’s history, and he will be greatly missed.”
Considered one of the greatest point guards in Cal history, the 5-foot-9 Ransom led the Golden Bears in assists all three seasons he played from 1976 to 1978. He was chosen in the ninth round of the 1977 draft by the Golden State Warriors, but never played in an NBA game. In 2001, Ransom was inducted into the Cal Athletics Hall of Fame.
