Officer Shoots 2 Outside Church
A Pomona police officer shot two suspects during a traffic stop that turned into a gun battle early Sunday near a church full of Easter worshipers attending midnight Mass, authorities said.
When the officer tried to detain two men at the 1000 block of Las Brisas Circle, one began shooting at the officer with a handgun, said sheriff’s Deputy Cruz Solis.
The officer returned fire, hitting both suspects in the upper body, he said.
The alleged gunman, 19-year-old Juan Bravo of Pomona, was struck several times in the chest, Solis said. He was in serious condition at a hospital.
Sergio Espinoza, 20, also of Pomona, was hospitalized in good condition with one gunshot wound in his upper body, Solis said.
The officer, whose name was not released, was not injured, he said.
When the shooting began, about 700 worshipers were about to leave St. Joseph Catholic Church on West Holt Avenue following a two-hour Mass.
No one else was hurt in the shooting.
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