Officer-Involved Shooting inside Police Station NR14160ne

April 28, 2014

UPDATED: The officers involved in the below incident have been identified as Police Officer II April Lockhart and Alberto Ortiz.

April 21, 2014

Los Angeles: On Monday, April 7, 2014, around 8:00 p.m., West Traffic Division uniformed officers assigned to work the front desk and were assisting a citizen with completing a traffic report. The officers observed the suspect, later identified as Daniel Yealu, enter the lobby area from the main entrance on Venice Boulevard. The officers asked Yealu if he needed assistance and he replied he wanted to make a complaint. Suddenly, Yealu produced a semiautomatic handgun and began firing at the officers behind the desk at which time an officer-involved shooting (OIS) occurred. Yealu was struck by gunfire and fell to the ground where he was taken into custody without further incident.

The Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics responded and transported the suspect to a local hospital for medical treatment.

A semiautomatic pistol was recovered from the lobby floor near where Yealu fell to the ground. Additionally, an AK-47 rifle and two ammunition cans containing hundreds of rounds of rifle and pistol ammunition were recovered from Yealu’s Nissan Altima which was located in a parking lot adjacent to the OIS location.

One officer was struck by the suspect’s gunfire and was transported to a local hospital for medical treatment and was admitted.

Los Angeles Police Department Force Investigation Division (FID) responded to the incident and will be handling the investigation of the officer-involved shooting.

The investigation will ultimately be reviewed by the Chief of Police, Office of the Inspector General and The Board of Police Commissioners for compliance with the Department’s use-of-force policy which states that an officer’s use-of-force actions must be objectively reasonable. Additionally, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Justice System Integrity Division will conduct a comprehensive review of the facts of the officer-involved shooting.

Anyone with information is asked to call Force Investigation Division at (213) 486-5230. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (877-527-3247). Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477). Tipsters may also contact Crime Stoppers by texting to phone number 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone. All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.” Tipsters may also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on “webtips” and follow the prompts.