Murrieta Shooting By Off-Duty Hemet Cop: 1 Man In Critical Condition

MURRIETA, CA — Heavy police activity and street closures Monday in Murrieta were the result of a shooting by an off-duty Hemet Police Officer that left a man in critical condition.

According to the Murrieta Police Department, at approximately 9:13 a.m., its officers responded to a strip mall parking lot at 39540 Murrieta Hot Springs Road regarding a shooting that had just occurred there.

Police found a man with multiple gunshot wounds. He was treated at the scene by emergency personnel and sent to a local hospital in critical condition, the police department reported.

Among the witnesses to the shooting was the off-duty Hemet Police officer. An initial Murrieta Police Department investigation revealed the officer fired on the man.

According to the preliminary investigation, the off-duty officer "intervened" in a road rage incident between two people and subsequently fired, leaving one man wounded.

No other injuries were reported.

"All gunshots have been accounted for, and no other people were injured by the gunfire," according to Murrieta PD.

A handgun belonging to the off-duty officer was found at the scene; the officer was cooperating with the investigation, according to Murrieta PD.

It's not clear whether the gun was the off-duty officer's service weapon. The officer's identity was not released.

Police did not indicate that any other weapons were found at the scene.

The Murrieta Police Department is investigating the incident along with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

Following the shooting, Murrieta PD posted a message to social media asking residents to avoid the area of Murrieta Hot Springs Road, between Margarita Road and School House Way, as well as the area of Margarita Road, between Murrieta Hot Springs Road and Fordham Way. The area contains residential neighborhoods, medical offices, and strip malls, and is near the Murrieta Hot Springs Resort.