Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department IDs suspect killed in standoff
Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department IDs suspect killed in standoff
Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department has identified 44-year-old Eduardo Martinez of Bay Point as the suspect killed after a standoff in Knightsen. The sheriff also released a drone photo of the suspect wielding a shotgun he allegedly used to shoot sheriff's deputies.
KNIGHTSEN, Calif. - An 11-hour standoff in the San Joaquin Delta community of Knightsen, which began after a woman reported that a man had held her hostage overnight and threatened to set her on fire, ended late Thursday with a suspect dead and two sheriff's deputies injured with gunshot wounds.
The Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office said in a statement on its Facebook page that three deputies were shot by the suspect and the suspect, identified as Eduardo Martinez, 44, of Bay Point, was fatally shot by deputies when they returned fire.
The Sheriff's office released two photos taken by drone. One, of Martinez wielding a shotgun they said was used to shoot deputies, and another of a close-up of the weapon.
Deputies went a house in the 1700 block of Green Acres Lane in Knightsen after the woman reported around 9:42 a.m. that a man had been holding her hostage and "pushed her onto a coffee table, breaking her ribs, and poured gasoline on her threatening to set her on fire," according to the Facebook statement. The woman managed to escape after the deputies arrived.
At 12:40 p.m., the sheriff's SWAT team was called. The sheriff's hostage negotiation team communicated with the suspect into the evening, according to the Facebook statement.
Contra Costa Co, Sheriff's Facebook page
About 8:58 p.m., the suspect came out of the house and fired a shotgun at members of the SWAT team, striking three.
That's when deputies returned fire and hit the suspect. The sheriff's office said the suspect had shot at deputies several times during the day.
The sheriff's department said one deputy struck in the chest was saved by his bulletproof vest. Another was hit in the head by shotgun pellets and a third was shot in the arm. All three were treated and released from the hospital, officials said.
The sheriff's department said Martinez had prior arrests for domestic battery, spousal abuse, false imprisonment, and making threats.
Following the county's protocol for officer-involved shootings, the incident is being investigated by both the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office and the Sheriff's Office.