Armed Suspect Killed In Hail Of Police Gunfire In Santa Ana
SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — An armed suspect wanted in connection with a shooting was shot dead by a hail of police fire Wednesday afternoon, authorities said.
The suspect was stopped in his truck at Main Street and Pine Street.
CBS2's Michele Gile reported the suspect -- a man in his 30s -- might have also shot himself.
Cellphone video from the scene captured police yelling at the man -- in English and Spanish -- to repeatedly drop his gun.
Then the sound of gunfire can be heard.
Officers first attempted to get the suspect, allegedly armed, to surrender on Main Street.
Authorities say minutes earlier, a few blocks away, citizens called 911 to report that a man in a white truck had shot at them. Police later told Gile the suspect is believed to have fired at a romantic rival. The suspect missed.
Police located the suspect and in the process of making a felony stop allegedly observed that he was holding a handgun to his head.
The sound of a muffled gunshot is heard about 90 seconds before officers fired at the man. Officers say the suspect then stepped out of the vehicle.
Witness Nathan Melanson heard gunfire and officers yelling as he watched from his balcony.
"He got off that first shot," Melanson said, "at that point, they were checking to see if he still had the gun. They told him to put the gun down, and he didn't. When he began to exit the vehicle, they shot him."
"Based on the radio traffic, it appears the suspect fired a self-inflicted gun shot wound, and then exits the vehicle with the weapon," said Captain Anthony Bertagna of the Santa Ana Police Department.
