ESCONDIDO - A man was shot to death Monday night in the 500 block of North Midway Drive, Escondido police said.

The shooting was reported at 8:21 p.m. at the Midway Estates apartments near Valley Parkway and authorities said it appeared to be a homicide.

The unidentified victim, who was approximately 19 years old, was shot in the driveway of the apartment complex and then ran onto the sidewalk, Sgt. Doug Sams said at the scene just after 9 p.m.

Authorities shut down one side of the roadway and diverted traffic on North Midway Drive to preserve the crime scene, Lt. J.W. Stuard said.

Police cars and curious neighbors surrounded the street near the crime scene soon after the shooting.

The shooting investigation was ongoing Monday night.

Guadalupe Bautista, who lives nearby, said that she heard three shots between 8:20 and 8:30 p.m., followed by a woman screaming for help. Bautista spoke to a reporter in Spanish and her comments were translated by her husband, Ignacio.

The neighborhood does not often have serious problems, Ignacio Bautista said. He said the days are quiet, but evenings can bring unwelcome activity.

"At night a lot of people hang around and teenagers drink," he said.

The last major incident in the neighborhood occurred March 6 on the same block of North Midway Drive, when a 75-year-old man held off police officers in a nine-hour armed standoff. The man, William G. Sloan, committed suicide.

- Contact Sarah Wilkins at (760) 761-4414 or swilkins@nctimes.com.