Police Arrest Attempt Murder Suspect in Hollywood

Los Angeles: Los Angeles Police Department officers arrested a man for attempted murder after the man struggled with police on Santa Monica Boulevard.

A little after 7 PM Saturday evening, officers broadcast a description of a man suspected in an attempted murder, which had occurred 15 minutes earlier. Hearing the suspect’s last known direction of travel, two Hollywood officers drove toward Santa Monica Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue, about a quarter of a mile from the original assault.

The officers noticed a man matching the suspect’s description. He was standing in a strip mall parking lot. The man was 34-year-old Santiago Ledesma. When Ledesma noticed the officers, he tried to run away. One officer followed on foot, while his partner paralleled in the police car.

Sergeant Scott Murray heard the officers broadcasting the suspect’s escape and drove to the area. Murray drove into the strip mall parking lot and saw the suspect reaching into his waistband, as the other two officers chased from behind. Murray drove the police car toward Ledesma and made contact, causing Ledesma to fall.

Ledesma continued to struggle on the ground to remove an object from his waistband. The two pursuing officers struggled to restrain Ledesma. Fearing Ledesma would pull a gun, Police Officer Richard Amio applied a carotid restraint control hold, which temporarily stopped Ledesma’s resistance.

The officers were able to handcuff Ledesma and removed a small caliber gun from his waistband.

Ledesma was examined by a doctor then booked on the attempted murder charge from the earlier incident.

Force Investigation Division will investigate the incident.

Police officers are trained how to use the carotid restraint control hold, which constricts blood flow to the brain, causing the subject to temporarily loose consciousness. It is applied in close-contact, life-and-death situations where other force options are not practical.