Santa Ana Shootout Leaves Officer, Suspect Injured

An undercover police investigation at a Santa Ana convenience store erupted in violence early Saturday when a carload of young adults drove into the parking lot and opened fire for no apparent reason, wounding one officer and leaving a suspect in serious condition, police said.

Vice officers in plainclothes were conducting a late night sting operation in the parking lot of the Circle K in the 2400 block of South Fairview Street to catch minors attempting to illegally buy alcohol, Santa Ana Sgt. Dick Faust said.

About 1 a.m., a 16-year-old boy walked up to one of the undercover officers and asked him to buy beer for him. Just as the officer was trying to arrest the boy, the car filled with four or five people pulled into the lot and the passengers began shouting and then shooting at the officers.

Investigators returned the fire and a furious exchange of shots shattered car windows and pierced neighboring businesses.

Police said Sunday that they have no idea what prompted the youths to begin firing at the undercover officers, and the matter is under investigation.

Nearby restaurant owner John Dallas, who arrived at work later that morning, said, “There must have been 50 bullets on the ground. The shell cases were everywhere and the police have been here all day.”

At least one of those bullets hit a side wall of Dallas’ Chef Country Kitchen Restaurant, he added. A 9-millimeter semi-automatic handgun also was recovered from the scene.

During the shootout, one Santa Ana officer, a five-year veteran, suffered gunshot wounds, apparently from ricocheting bullets, to his upper right arm, left thigh and ankle. The officer, whose name and age were not released, was treated and released at the scene.

One suspect, Alex Dominguez, 20, of Orange, was struck in the upper body and remained in serious condition at Western Medical Center-Santa Ana, Faust said. He was released Saturday afternoon.

Dominguez was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, and the other suspects in the car were taken into custody. Dominguez had not been formally charged by Saturday afternoon.

The 16-year-old who had tried to obtain beer had no apparent connection with the other suspects and was detained for attempting to buy alcohol and resisting arrest, Faust said.

The boy’s mother said in an interview Saturday that her son knows and went to the Circle K with the group in the car.

She said the boy fled from the officer because he thought the man was a “hobo who was going to rob him.”

She said the boy’s friends opened fire because they were trying to protect themselves and her son.

The investigation is continuing with the assistance of the district attorney’s office, a routine procedure in officer-involved shootings.