Sonoma County Man with Fake Gun Shot by Deputy

SONOMA COUNTY, CA -- A Windsor man who authorities say was suicidal was hospitalized with a gunshot wound after police say he was shot by a Sheriff's deputy who thought a replica firearm the man was carrying was real.

At about 8:33 pm on Monday, Jan. 30, the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Dispatch Center received a 911 wireless hang up call. 911 dispatchers attempted to call the number back, but there was no answer. A dispatcher left a message on the voicemail and at 8:39 pm another call was received from the same number.

The caller spoke Spanish, stating he was at the Lady of Guadalupe Church in Windsor and asked for an interpreter. As 911 dispatchers were connecting him with a Spanish interpreter, the caller again hung up, according to the Sheriff's Office.

Deputies responded to the church to check on the welfare of the caller, and in the rear parking lot noticed a red Nissan Maxima was occupied by a man in the driver’s seat. As the deputies approached the car they noticed the man was crying and talking on his cellular phone. As they got closer they saw that the man had what appeared to be a black semiautomatic handgun in his right hand, holding it to his side.

Deputies retreated and called for backup. Several more deputies responded, including a Spanish speaker. They continued to negotiate and deescalate the situation until 9:21 pm, at which point they had the man out of the car, but he kept concealing his hands. The man went back toward his car at which point a deputy fired what police refer to as a "less lethal" foam tip projectile against the man.

The man then turned toward another deputy with the handgun, at which point the deputy fired a round from his handgun, striking him in the center torso area causing the suspect to drop his weapon and fall to the ground. The man was taken into custody, given first aid and taken to Memorial Hospital, where he is being treated and is expected to recover from his injuries.

The deputies later determined that the man’s handgun, seen in the above photo, was in fact a BB gun and not an real semiautomatic handgun.

The man is identified as Luis Alberto Olmedo, a 25-year-old Windsor resident.

This incident is still under investigation by the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office’s Violent Crimes Unit.

Image via Sonoma County Sheriff