An off-duty Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy is in critical condition after he was shot in the head in a fast food restaurant, authorities said.
The deputy was in a Jack in the Box in Alhambra at about 5:45 p.m. on Monday when he was “tragically and senselessly shot in the head,” Los Angeles Sheriff Alex Villanueva said.
The deputy, a 13-year veteran, “needs our prayers,” the sheriff told reporters Monday night.
The deputy, whose name has not been released, was in civilian clothes at the time of the attack. He was waiting for his food when he was shot once in the back of the head, reported ABC Los Angeles station KABC-TV.
The shooting was caught on video, sheriff’s officials told KABC-TV.
But the video doesn’t include audio, “so we don’t know if there were words exchanged,” Capt. Kent Wegner said.
“There doesn’t appear to be an overt motive,” Wenger told KABC-TV.
After authorities blasted out descriptions of the suspect and his car, on Tuesday morning police in Long Beach, California, saw a car matching that description, officials said.
The individual in the car was detained as a person of interest, according to the sheriff’s office.
Villanueva had tweeted Monday night, “Our #LASD family continues to persevere in the wake of the senseless shooting of our deputy.”
“Whomever carried out this cowardly attack; we won’t rest until we find you & ensure justice is brought swiftly upon you,” he wrote.
Our #LASD family continues to persevere in the wake of the senseless shooting of our deputy. Our hearts & minds are solemnly united w/those who hold him dear. Whomever carried out this cowardly attack; we won’t rest until we find you & ensure justice is brought swiftly upon you.
