Rookie LAPD officer sought in fatal Pomona shooting

Authorities are searching for a rookie Los Angeles police officer considered a person of interest in connection with the fatal shooting of a man in Pomona on Friday, law enforcement officials said.

The probationary officer, identified as Henry Solis, 27, was off-duty at the time of the killing near a bar district of downtown Pomona, and he has not reported to work since then, Pomona police said in a statement issued Saturday evening.

Investigators “have reason to believe that he knows the police are looking to talk to him,” the statement said.

Cmdr. Andrew Smith, an LAPD spokesman, said Solis joined the department in June. After graduating from the academy, he was assigned to the Devonshire Division in the San Fernando Valley, where he has worked since November.

Smith said Solis had an “unremarkable” history and “no disciplinary issues” since joining the LAPD.

Smith said that Solis failed to report to work Saturday morning and that his supervisors weren’t able to locate him by phone. Pomona police later advised the LAPD that Solis was a person of interest in their case, Smith said.

Smith said it was “too early to comment” about the officer’s possible involvement. He said the LAPD was assisting Pomona police in locating Solis.

“We’re obviously going to cooperate with them to every extent we can to provide them with any information they need,” Smith said.

Pomona police said the fatal shooting occurred about 3:30 a.m., when police received multiple 911 calls reporting gunshots in the area of Third and Main streets.

The shooting followed an altercation at a bar in a district of downtown Pomona packed with nightclubs and lounges, Pomona Police Cpl. Rich Martinez said. The fight proceeded down the street to about a block away from the bar district, where the shooting took place.

Officers arrived to find a 23-year-old man who had been shot in the lower torso. Paramedics took him to a hospital, where he died.

On Saturday, police identified the dead man as Salome Rodriguez of Ontario.

Pomona police have provided few other details about the shooting. On Friday, police said it was unclear if the two men knew each other.

Solis, a Pomona resident, was described as 5 foot 9 and 185 pounds. He drives a silver or gray 2013 Volkswagen Jetta. The license plate is 7FAS527.

“We’re actively looking for him,” Martinez said. “We don’t know what his level of involvement is, but we want to talk to him.”

Anyone with information about the shooting or Solis’ whereabouts is asked to call Pomona police detectives at (909) 620-2085.

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