SAN GABRIEL, Calif. (KABC) -- A Pomona SWAT officer, who was shot while serving a search warrant in San Gabriel during a sweep targeting criminal motorcycle gangs, has died. Investigators said the officer was shot almost immediately upon breaching the outer door of a house on the 100 block of San Marino Avenue near the intersection of West Hermosa and Las Tunas drives at about 4 a.m. The wounded officer, identified as Shaun Diamond, was transported to Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena. He passed away early Wednesday morning. It is with a heavy heart that we must deliver the news that early this morning, Pomona Police SWAT Officer Shaun Diamond had succumbed to his injuries, Police Chief Paul Capraro said in a statement. Diamond was attempting to breach the outer door after SWAT members announced their presence, according to an L.A. County sheriffs official. The interior door opened and a shotgun was fired. Diamond was hit above his ballistics vest. He was wearing a Kevlar helmet, and may have been stuck in the back of the head, according to the sheriffs official. Authorities said San Gabriel resident David Martinez, 36, was taken into custody, and no further suspects were sought in connection to the shooting. Martinezs criminal history includes assault with a deadly weapon and domestic violence, according to the L.A. County Sheriffs Department. Martinez was the target of several warrants, a sheriffs official said. Diamond was the first in the line of fire during the operation, according to the official. The suspects father was struck by gunfire in the left arm above the elbow during the incident, police said. It was believed the shotgun was only fired once, the official said. The father was also arrested. Investigators said the SWAT officers who entered the home did not return fire. Officers did not have a clear shot at the suspect after he opened fire, according to the sheriffs department. Martinezs father was in the way and the suspect was lying on the ground with a gun at his side. Martinez was then taken into custody without incident. Martinez was booked for attempted murder of a peace officer and was held on $4 million bail. Police officers with Pomona, Montebello, San Gabriel and Alhambra police departments were all involved in serving the search warrant. Authorities said the search warrant was part of a joint operation sweep targeting criminal motorcycle gangs across the Los Angeles area. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Departments Homicide Bureau is investigating the shooting. Last month, motorists in Corona were endangered in a shootout between Hells Angels and Mongols gang members. A neighbor across the street from the residence told Eyewitness News Tuesday that David Martinez often wore a Mongols motorcycle gang jacket. The connection with the Mongols was not confirmed by police. The neighbor also said the suspect and his family, including children, moved to the area about a year and a half ago. He has a newborn, and he has an 8- and a 10-year-old and its just really scary for the kids, said neighbor Marco Polanco. Pomona Police are focusing much of their attention on their wounded officer. All of Pomona PD is really pulling for him right now, and we can only ask that you guys do the same, said Pomona Police Lt. Mike Keltner. Diamond started his police career with the LAPD, then the Montebello Police Department before joining the Pomona Police Department in 2006. Diamond has been a SWAT officer since 2008, serving on dozens of SWAT operations, according to Pomona Police. Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Departments Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500. If you prefer to provide information anonymously, you may call Crime Stoppers by dialing (800) 222-TIPS (8477), or texting the letters TIPLA plus your tip to CRIMES (274637), or by using the website LA Crime Stoppers.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 16:08:56 +0000
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