'Erratic' Machete-Wielding Man Learns the Hard Way That Guns Work Better After Taking Child Hostage
A California man who held a child hostage and swung at an officer with a machete was shot dead Tuesday after a confrontation with police.
The incident took place in San Jacinto in Riverside County around 1:00 p.m., according to a news release from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies had been summoned to the address after a reported domestic dispute.
“The female reported her boyfriend was behaving erratically and armed with a machete. The female was able to escape from the residence, however, the suspect prevented her 12-year-old child from leaving with her,” the release said.
The man proceeded to barricade himself inside the home. Police then entered the residence.
“When deputies attempted to rescue the juvenile, the suspect hit the deputy in the head with a wooden object, causing a minor injury, and then swung the machete at another deputy,” the release said.
“The Special Enforcement Bureau responded to assist with the rescue of the juvenile. During the rescue, the suspect struck a deputy with the machete and a deputy involved shooting occurred.”
The child was not injured, the release said, but the man wielding the machete was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Two deputies were injured. One was treated at the scene. The other was hospitalized for what the release said were non-life-threatening injuries.
The names of the deputies were not released. The two deputies will be put on paid administrative leave.
The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department will investigate the circumstances of the shooting.
The San Jacinto Unified School District placed nearby Hyatt Elementary School on lockdown during the incident, according to The Press-Enterprise.
The incident came five days after Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Isaiah Cordero, 32, was shot and killed during a traffic stop.
Funeral services will be held on Friday morning for Deputy Isaiah Cordero, who was killed in the line of duty last week.
— The Desert Sun (@MyDesert) January 3, 2023
It also came several days after a New Year’s Eve attack in New York City’s Times Square in which Trevor Bickford of Maine, allegedly a radicalized Islamist, attacked police with a machete.
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