Home Invasion Victim Kills Robber Posing as Policeman

A man whose home was invaded Wednesday by two robbers posing as police chased them and opened fire on their car, killing one as he jumped out, police said.

The two robbers, one wearing what appeared to be a police badge on a chain or string around his neck, entered the home in the 200 block of North Clark Street about 2 p.m. and handcuffed two residents, a man and a woman, Police Lt. Ed Tunstall said. Also inside were the woman’s two children, an infant and a 5-year-old daughter.

Tunstall said the robbers later removed the handcuffs and tied the couple, Jose Adame, 30, and Luciana Mendoza, 25, with rope while they searched the house. The children were unharmed.

When the robbers left with jewelry, Adame freed himself, got a gun and chased them to a car that was parked around the corner.

As Adame fired at the car, one of the robbers jumped out and was hit by gunfire, Tunstall said. The unidentified robber had a revolver in his waistband, police said, and jewelry and a badge were found nearby.

The wounded man was taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange, where he died. The second robber drove off in a light blue, 1970s station wagon with the right rear window shot out. He was described as white with a red goatee and red hair combed straight, about 25 to 30 years old, 5 feet 7 and about 170 pounds. A third person was in the car, police said.

Eyewitnesses said they heard from three to eight shots near Maple Avenue and North Clark, within a mile of the city’s famed Orange circle.

Dustin Schneider, 44, who lives across the street from the shooting, was in his backyard when he heard gunfire.

“I came out front to look because from the sound of the gunshots, it was way too close,” Schneider said.

Schneider said he saw “a guy in the street aiming a gun” at a car. “One guy jumped out of the car and the first guy kept firing, hitting the guy near the car who fell to the ground.”

Schneider said the man was hit three times by bullets, twice in the abdomen and once in the chest.

Adame continued firing at the car as it sped east on Maple, Schneider said.

Delores Escovedo, 23, who manages apartments near the shooting, said the sound of gunfire made her look out her front window. She heard about six shots, she said.

The shooter “was angry and yelling at the other man and then he kept shooting at him,” Escovedo said.

Adame returned to his home and surrendered to police. He was still being questioned by police at the station late Wednesday night. Tunstall said he could face a criminal charge.

“We’re still investigating this and trying to determine whether if there was an assault in [Adame’s] home and it led to the shooting,” Tunstall said. “It’s too early to determine.”

The robbery and shooting left many residents shaken.

“This is really a quiet neighborhood,” Alex Castorena, 24, said. “Look around you. What do you see? Nothing but families are here. We’re all surprised by this.”