HAYWARD -- Nearly two years after 17-year-old Samuel Nava III was shot and killed as he rode in the back of a car on Mission Boulevard, police announced Monday they have arrested a man and woman in connection with the slaying.

Suspects Robert Joseph Yim, 21, and Veronica Rodriguez, 20, both of Hayward, were taken into custody together on Friday as they left a residence in Newark.

Police Lt. Roger Keener said the arrests were made "through investigation, forensics examinations and witness accounts."

Yim and Rodriguez are each being held on one count of murder and three counts of attempted murder. They are scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday.

Nava, a popular Hayward High student who went by "Audi," was shot May 3, 2010, after someone in a car he was in got into a verbal exchange with a man accompanied by a woman at Stonybrook Park in south Hayward.

Nava and his friends drove away, but the shooter followed the car on foot down to nearby Mission Boulevard at Industrial Parkway, where they crossed paths. The shooter stood on the median and fired numerous times at the car as it made a U-turn.

The first bullet struck her son in the head, Serita Nava said.

Nava, who along with other family members has sought to keep the case in the public eye, said she was "numb" when she heard of the arrests.

"I didn't know whether to believe it or not," she said. "I had given up hope with the police -- they really redeemed themselves

She said she believes perseverance paid off and looks forward to seeing justice served.

"This is wonderful, but I will be even happier when I hear the hammer slam on the bench and they're convicted," Nava said.

Contact Eric Kurhi at 510-293-2473. Follow him at Twitter.com/erickurhi. Read his blog at IBAbuzz.com/hayword.