Valinda barricade standoff ends after 48 hours
LA PUENTE, Calif. - A suspect barricaded inside a home in Valinda for 48 hours after opening fire on deputies Friday afternoon.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department received a call for service around 2:19 p.m. on March 10, reporting an assault with a deadly weapon. LASD responded to the 16900 block of Wing Ln., where the suspect was reportedly armed with a gun and fired upon deputies.
"When deputies arrived there was an immediate deputy-involved shooting. We know that the suspect has been actively shooting rounds at deputy personnel," said a sheriff's official on the scene.
The suspect then barricaded inside a home in the area. The department's Special Enforcement Bureau was called to assist deputies as the standoff dragged into the evening.
Family members of the suspect were on scene Friday helping deputies communicate with the suspect.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department originally reported that two people were injured and requested two ambulances. However, LASD officials said only one female victim was transported to the hospital for an injury not related to gunfire.
No deputies were injured.
On Sunday, Sheriff Robert Luna shed more light on the situation as the standoff pushed into its third day of action. Luna said the suspect fired what deputies believed was an assault rifle at deputies, and that the suspect has "fired dozens of rounds at our deputies while they've been stationed in and around that residence."
"We have been asked ‘What is taking so long,’" Luna said. "We have members of our hostage negotiation team that have been trying to communicate with the suspect for hours and hours, and they're still continuing to try."
Luna said that the Los Angeles Police Department is assisting in the standoff while the LASD brings in new deputies to take over the crisis negotiations.
"We're very cognizant of fatigue, and we want to make sure that we're switching out fresh bodies, fresh minds," he said. "At the end of the day, we want to be sharp. We want to do everything we can to bring that chaotic scene back to a peaceful situation for the neighborhood and take the suspect into custody."
Residents in the area have had to be evacuated while the scene is active. The Hacienda La Puente Unified School District announced on Twitter Saturday that Workman High School is acting as an evacuation center for families that have been evacuated while deputies deal with the suspect.
Luna said Sunday that he visited the site and spoke with some of displaced families.
"I talked to the residents, thanked them for their patience and hoping that we can get them back into their houses as soon as it's safe," Luna said.