1 dead, 1 injured in shooting at fire station in California
By Amir Vera, Cheri Mossburg and Stella Chan, CNN
An off-duty firefighter shot two people, killing one, at a Los Angeles County fire station Tuesday morning, officials said during a news conference Tuesday.
The off-duty employee, a firefighter specialist and engineer, was found dead in a burning home about 10 miles from the scene of the shooting, officials said. Officials did not identify the victims or the suspect.
The shooting took place around 10:50 a.m. PT when authorities received reports about a shooting at Fire Station 81 Agua Dulce, California, about 30 miles north of Downtown Los Angeles, according to Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby.
Upon arrival, first responders found a 44-year-old man with gunshot wounds to his torso who was pronounced dead at the scene, said Brandon Dean with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department homicide bureau.
The man was a firefighter specialist and engineer who’s been with the department for more than 20 years, Osby said.
An LAFD captain, a 54-year-old man, was also found with gunshot wounds and taken to a local hospital where he remains in critical, but stable condition, Osby said.
“As a fire chief, I’ve dealt with a lot of death and lot of fallen members of our department and I always prayed we would never have a line-of-duty death,” Osby said through tears. “I never thought that if it occurred it would occur in this fashion.”
Based on witness testimony, Dean said investigators received a name and vehicle description of the suspect, which led them to a residence about 10 miles away in Acton. The home was on fire when authorities arrived on scene, Dean said.
Members of a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s SWAT team were seen being dropped into the scene of the fire via helicopter, according to aerials provided by CNN affiliate KABC-TV.
In the process of fighting the fire, deputies saw a man in a pool with a fatal gunshot wound to the head.
“We feel fairly confident that is our shooter, but we can’t say with 100% certainty,” Dean said, adding that it’s unknown if the suspect’s wound was self-inflicted. No deputies fired at the suspect and no one else at the house prior to first responders.
“This is very early on, the actual motive we’re unsure of,” Dean said.
