An armed off-duty LA County Sheriff’s deputy shot by Fontana police Tuesday during an altercation on a golf course has died, authorities said Wednesday.
The shooting occurred at the Sierra Lakes Golf Club after Fontana police responded to a call from a woman who said her husband fired a gun at wall inside their home near the course, police said. Several other callers reported the man carrying gun in residential community.
When police arrived, they found the deputy sitting on a path near the putting green. He was identified by the sheriff's department Wednesday as Deputy Alejandro Diaz.
Diaz raised his gun toward the officers, who then opened fire, said Officer Daniel Romero.
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“The suspect was hit. He went down, he was treated by (paramedics) at the scene and transported to a local hospital in an unknown condition,” Romero said.
A Fontana police detective confirmed to Telemundo 52 that the deputy later died. The sheriff's department issued a statement later Wednesday morning.
"The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is deeply saddened to hear of the tragic shooting incident involving our off-duty deputy who passed away yesterday," the sheriff's department said in a statement. "We are in close communication with Fontana Police Department and the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department as they conduct their ongoing investigation. This incident is extremely difficult for the family, our personnel, and the officers involved."
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According to a neighbor, Myesha Dowe, the deputy lived in one of the homes surrounding the course.
“He was a police officer that was helping us. Not only doing his job in the neighborhood. But also, just a good neighbor,” Dowe said.
She was at home when she thought she heard fireworks. She said she then started getting messages from friends saying they heard shots and saw their fellow neighbor armed and visibly distressed.
“They saw him come out and run across the golf course with the gun," Dowe said.
