Suspect made Threats To Officers
Alejandro Fernandez was killed after firing on officers.
Watsonville Police are dealing with their first officer involved shooting in which an officer was shot since 1998. A veteran officer was shot while pursuing a suspect who had run from them when they tried to stop him. The suspect was wanted for questioning related to incidents involving transients along the river levee.
On Friday night, officers set up surveillance on Alejandro Campos Fernandez’s residence on Front Street, and when they spotted him leaving and tried to stop him, he ran. Police stated that Fernandez ran down the embankment of the Pajaro River with two officers following.
They stated that Fernandez was then hiding crouched down in the bushes, and when the officers got within 25 feet of him he opened fire. The officer that was shot, a police Sergeant, was hit in the back. He did not have his gun drawn, partly because the surveillance team had not seen a gun on Fernandez.
The Police Sergeant’s shirt and vest show the impact of the shotgun blast.
The two officers returned fire until Fernandez stopped. After the gunfight was over, several more officers went down the embankment and found that Fernandez was dead.
Watsonville Police stated that the officer’s bulletproof vest saved his life as the pellets from the shotgun hit him in the back. The officer’s initial reaction was to turn his back when Fernandez started firing.
Fernandez was being investigated for allegedly robbing homeless people that live along the levee. He also has a long criminal history including possession of a firearm, and reportedly made threats to a Watsonville Police back in April.
Read More: Santa Cruz Sentinel – Watsonville police ID man in Saturday’s fatal police shootout in Pajaro
