UPDATE 9:34am Monday | Chief of Police Jim McDonnell issued a statement and took questions from the media Sunday afternoon after the early morning officer-involved shooting that killed a sexual assault suspect in Long Beach. He reiterated the story released by the department yesterday (which you can read below) and also added new details.
After last weekend’s controversial shooting of Doug Zerby, in which it appears officers did not notify Zerby that they were present nor asked him to drop his weapon (it would turn out to be a water nozzle), McDonnell on Sunday made it very clear that officers confronted the suspect and announced themselves in both English and Spanish. The suspect had fled to a nearby home and officers told him to exit in both languages. When he did not, they entered the home in an attempt to arrest him.
They found the suspect in a second-story bedroom and again told him to surrender in both English and Spanish. The suspect was sitting on a bed and rolled to the other side, where he grabbed a handgun and three officers opened fire, killing him.
3:50pm Sunday | The Long Beach Police Department issued a statement today after police officers were flagged down by a female in the area of the 2100 block of Pine Avenue this morning around 5:00am regarding a sexual assault that involved a minor, with the suspect being a family member.
According to the release, after conducting interviews officers determined a crime occurred, they went to the location in the 2100 block of Pine Avenue to contact the suspect. As officers contacted the suspect inside a residence, the suspect produced a handgun and an officer involved shooting occurred.
The suspect was taken into custody and life saving measures were rendered, the suspect was pronounced dead at the scene by Long Beach Fire Department Paramedics. The suspect is being identified only as a 41-year-old male and a Long Beach resident, until the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office confirms his identity. The suspect’s handgun was recovered at the scene. No officers were injured.
The minor victim was transported to a local hospital and treated.
The investigation is ongoing as Homicide Detectives are investigating along with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office as they do in all Officer Involved Shootings.
Anyone with information regarding this incident are asked to call Long Beach Police Department Homicide Detectives David Rios or Roger Zottneck at (562) 570-7244.
More to come…