Suspect in O.C. Police Shooting Left Morbid Note

A Garden Grove man slain in a weekend double shooting that left a police officer fighting for his life was despondent over a custody battle for his young son and had penned a morbid farewell note asking for forgiveness, police said Monday.

Police suspect that Carlos E. Caicedo, 24, was armed with a handgun, was drinking beer and may have been preparing to take his own life Sunday when Officer Robert J. Henry approached him on a secluded street, perhaps intent on helping a visibly distraught man, Sgt. Andy Gonis said.

Answering a call of “shots fired,” police found Caicedo dead of a gunshot wound about 4:10 a.m. He was slumped atop Henry, who was critically wounded in the apparent gun battle, a bullet in his brain.

Henry remained in critical condition late Monday on a ventilator at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach. His neurosurgeon expressed cautious optimism, however, noting that Henry’s vital signs were stable and that he had some reflex movement.

Surgeons removed bullet fragments from the left side of Henry’s brain during a 5 1/2-hour operation Sunday, leaving a few non-critical fragments in the skull, a spokeswoman said.

Police still are trying to unravel the events that turned a quiet Sunday morning shift into tragedy for the five-year veteran.

At the time of the shooting, Henry had parked his cruiser in the parking lot of Newport Harbor Lutheran Church, near the intersection of 16th Street and Dover Drive, while patrolling the area. The parking spot on the west side of Upper Newport Bay is frequently used by officers to handle paperwork and other field duties between calls, Gonis said.

Henry may at first have approached Caicedo’s car, parked about 50 to 60 feet away at the end of 16th Street, to investigate, Gonis said.

The bodies were found leaning against the right side of Caicedo’s car, with Henry’s shoulders and head propped up by the open car door, Gonis said. Police moved Caicedo’s body to assist their colleague, who was taken to Hoag.

“The deceased was despondent over child custody issues,” Gonis said. “We obtained a letter from his bedroom, his parents advised us the deceased wrote it, and in it he makes several suicidal inferences.”

Gonis stressed that the police investigation is not concluded and he avoided calling the letter a “suicide note.” But it asked forgiveness, bade goodby to friends and relatives and instructed his family to dispose of his belongings, Gonis said.

Investigators interviewed people who knew Caicedo and were told he was despondent over a child custody battle, Gonis said. Caicedo’s 4-year-old son lives with his mother in Florida, according to relatives.

Despite the note, Carlos Caicedo’s sister on Monday night angrily denied that her brother was suicidal.

“That’s a lie, I can tell you that right now,” said Joanna Caicedo, who flew from her Marine Corps station in Florida to be with her grieving relatives. “No, that’s not true, he wasn’t.”

She said her family questions the police version of events. “My brother would not shoot a policeman. . . . It was not like him. He (had been) in the Army, he wasn’t a troublemaker,” she said.

The dead man’s parents told police their son had been drinking before he left the house the night he died. Police believe Caicedo also drank four beers from a 12-pack he had with him.

Blood, ballistics and toxicology tests are pending. Two handguns, including the officer’s service weapon, were found near Caicedo’s car. Police would not say if either gun had been fired.

Witnesses reported hearing gunshots shatter the early morning silence, but their statements have been “conflicting” regarding the number of shots and their timing, Assistant Dist. Atty. John Conley said.

Earlier police had considered that a second suspect might have been with Caicedo, but Gonis said Monday that investigators are “downplaying” the possibility now.

Henry is married and the father of three children, including a 3-week-old infant. He is well-liked and respected by his fellow officers, who have set up a collection fund for Henry’s family, officials said.

At Mater Dei High School, where he graduated in 1983, Henry played backup linebacker on the football team. Wayne Cochrun, the football coach at the time, said Henry was “a hard-working kid” who managed an impressive number of tackles his senior year despite playing behind one of the team’s stars.

Caicedo’s family remained secluded Monday, for the most part declining to talk about Carlos. His sister and other relatives say he was discharged from the Army about a year ago, although the Department of Defense failed Monday to turn up any records for him.

Court records show Caicedo had a 1992 speeding ticket and paid a misdemeanor fine of $103 for violating an entertainment ordinance in Santa Ana in November.

Family members described him as a “level-headed” young man who sometimes worked as a security guard and helped his family in its office-cleaning business.

Caicedo lived with his parents in Anaheim until the family moved to Garden Grove earlier this year.

At Monday’s City Council meeting, Mayor John W. Hedges expressed extreme shock at the shooting. He asked that donations to aid the officer and his family be sent to the Robert Henry Fund in care of the Newport Beach Police Officers and Employees Assn., 870 Santa Barbara Drive, P.O. Box 700, Newport Beach, CA 92660.

Times staff writers Mark Landsbaum, David Reyes, Greg Hernandez, Ken Ellingwood and Lily Dizon contributed to this report.

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Tragedy on the Beat

Investigators believe alcohol and a child-custody dispute may have led to the double-shooting Sunday that left a Newport Beach police officer in critical condition and a Garden Grove man dead. Police say a suicide note was found at the man’s home. Clues at the scene:

Police car

Suspect’s car

Bodies

12-pack of beer, four cans consumed

Flashlight

16th Street

Dover Drive

Passenger door open

Small parking lot

Church