COSTA MESA : Officer Wounded in Gunfight Identified
The police officer wounded during a gun battle on Harbor Boulevard was identified Monday as Bob Nishimura, 25, a three-year veteran of the Costa Mesa Police Department.
Nishimura was part of a team working on a case involving drugs and credit card fraud, Capt. Tom Lazar said. That case involved Jamie Michael Rubio, who was fatally shot Saturday on Harbor Boulevard just south of the San Diego Freeway, Lazar said.
Information on how and why the incident happened is still sketchy.
Rubio, 20, of Huntington Beach, had been staying at a local motel, Lazar said. When he left the motel and went to the International House of Pancakes on Harbor Boulevard, an officer approached him outside the restaurant at about 7:30 p.m. Moments later, special enforcement officers joined them.
After a short conversation, Rubio drew a handgun and started firing at officers, Lazar said. Two officers fired back, and Rubio was hit in the the chest and back. He was dead on arrival at UCI Medical Center.
Nishimura, who was wearing a flak jacket, was struck in the lower back and spine and has suffered internal injuries. His condition is stable.
Lazar would not say how many shots were fired nor how Rubio was involved in the investigation.
The district attorney’s office and Costa Mesa police are continuing the investigation.
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