Deputy Shot, Prisoner Freed in Ambush

An ambushed sheriff’s deputy was in critical condition Tuesday after a gunman shot him in the head and abdomen and shot the lock off his van to free a prisoner, authorities said.

The attack occurred two miles from the state Capitol in the parking lot of a medical building where the prisoner had been taken for an eye care appointment.

Deputy Steve Fonbuena, 35, a seven-year veteran of the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department, was in critical condition at University Medical Center, sheriff’s spokeswoman Sharon Telles said.

The escaped prisoner was identified as 50-year-old Victor Carrafa, a federal prisoner held without bail in County Jail on weapons and drug charges. Carrafa has an extensive criminal record, including two violent escapes, police spokesman Michael Heenan said.

Investigators said Fonbuena parked the prisoner transport van in the parking lot, then accompanied Carrafa into the building for the appointment.

When they returned to the vehicle, Fonbuena placed Carrafa in the van, then walked toward the driver’s side to get behind the wheel.

At that moment, a gunman approached Fonbuena with a handgun, shot him, then shot at the lock on the vehicle’s side door, investigators said. The door was wrenched open and Carrafa and the assailant fled in a red Ford Ranchero pickup. The deputy’s gun also was missing.