Gloria Zamora, a 40-year-old fitness coach and mother of seven, was shot and killed along with her date, Hector Garduno, outside a sushi restaurant in Fontana, California, on June 21. Police say her estranged husband, Thomas Alberto Tamayo Lizarraga, ambushed the pair in a shopping plaza parking lot.
Lizarraga was quickly shot and killed by an off-duty sheriff’s deputy who heard the gunfire and intervened. Authorities are still investigating how he found Zamora that night. “We don’t know how he knew where she was,” said Officer Steve Reed.
Zamora had recently spoken publicly about leaving her marriage to focus on personal growth and fitness. In a podcast, she revealed: “I felt like that person was just holding me back.” She leaves behind seven children aged 8 to 24. A GoFundMe launched by her daughter has raised over $32,000.
Garduno, a father of four daughters, was also remembered through a separate fundraiser. Loved ones say his loss leaves a painful void. The community continues to rally around both grieving families in the wake of this senseless tragedy.