201908.12
0

1 CHP officer dies after Riverside gun battle, 2 others hurt and suspect killed

by in News

Officials were investigating a gun battle that left three California Highway Patrol officers injured — one fatally — in Riverside on Monday, Aug. 12.

  • Officers use yellow tape to block off the scene of a gun battle in Riverside involving at least three CHP officers and one armed suspect. (Photo by OC Hawk)

  • Fellow officers load an injured CHP officer into a helicopter in Riverside on Monday, Aug. 12. after responding to the scene of a shooting (Photo by OC Hawk)

  • Sound
    The gallery will resume inseconds

  • Law enforcement at the scene of Monday’s shooting involving CHP officers. (Photo by OC Hawk)

  • Law enforcement at the scene of Monday’s shooting involving CHP officers. (Photo by OC Hawk)

  • Law enforcement at the scene of Monday’s shooting involving CHP officers. (Photo by OC Hawk)

  • Emergency responders at the scene of a shooting involving CHP officers Monday in the Riverside area near the 215 Freeway.
    (Photo by Terry Pierson/The Press-Enterprise)

  • Three CHP officer were shot one of them killed and one suspect shot and killed on Eastridge Avenue overpass over the 215 Freeway in Riverside on Monday, Aug 12, 2019. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

  • Site of shooting in Riverside on Monday, Aug. 12

of

Expand

The suspect was fatally shot, Riverside Police Officer Ryan Railsback said. Also involved in the incident were the Riverside Police Department and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

 

 

It’s not known why the suspect opened fire after CHP units made a traffic stop. That will be one part of a “very long” and “complex” investigation, Railsback said.

 

The shooting happened in the area of Box Springs Boulevard and Eastridge Avenue, west of the 215 Freeway, at about 5:36 p.m., Railsback said.

CHP Officer Juan Quintero said one of the officers died as a result of the shooting. Railsback said the gravity of the two surviving officers’ wounds could not immediately be confirmed.

There were indications that several passers-by were hit by flying glass or shrapnel during the gunfire, and Riverside Fire Department paramedics were treating those parties in the area.

 

Further details regarding what led up to the shooting were not immediately available, though broadcast reports showed CHP vehicles with shot-out windows and that the suspect had an assault weapon. Video showed officers loading injured officers into a law enforcement car and a helicopter so they could be rushed to hospitals.

The suspect in Monday’s incident was not immediately identified.

The investigation closed nearby Metrolink tracks.

 

Monday’s fatal shooting of the CHP officer — who was not immediately identified — follows the death of CHP Sgt. Steve Licon, who was killed April 6 when he was struck by a vehicle on the 15 Freeway in Lake Elsinore.

This story is developing. Please check back for updates.