Community Mourns Riverside County K-9 Killed In Line Of Duty

MEADOWBROOK, CA — The man who killed a Riverside County Sheriff's Department K-9 before he was fatally shot by deputies had three warrants issued for his arrest, authorities said Sunday.

The suspect, who has not yet been identified by authorities, was wanted on suspicion of robbery, assault with the intent to commit sexual assault and for violating his post release community supervision, according to Sgt. Wenndy Brito-Gonzalez.

About 4:45 p.m. Friday, a resident contacted deputies regarding an unknown man and woman who were on the resident's property near the 22200 block of River Road in unincorporated area southwest of Perris. Deputies were joined at the scene by a K-9 handler and his partner, "Rudy," Brito-Gonzalez said. They confirmed the man was a wanted felon and quickly established a perimeter in search of the suspect.

At some point during the search, Rudy alerted deputies to the location where the suspect was hiding, and the suspect fired a handgun at deputies, fatally striking the dog, Brito-Gonzalez said.

The suspect ignored deputies' commands to surrender, and he and the woman were seen running toward an occupied home by a sheriff's aviation unit. As deputies approached the suspects, the man pointed a gun at them and deputies opened fire, killing the suspect.

Rudy was taken to a veterinary hospital where he later died, Brito- Gonzalez said.

No deputies were injured during the shooting and the woman was detained pending further investigation. She was briefly arrested on suspicion of public intoxication, but was released as of Sunday afternoon according to Brito-Gonzalez.

According to the department, Rudy finished first in the handler protection category at last month's Las Vegas Metro Police K-9 Trials with Deputy Day. The department's Facebook page was flooded with condolences for the dog over the weekend from members of the public.

It was unclear how many deputies opened fire during the shooting, but all who were involved will be placed on paid administrative leave pending an internal investigation, per standard department policy.