RIVERSIDE: Alleged car thief shot by police after trying to ram officers
Officers arrested Ryan Rodriguez after a pursuit and officer involved shooting.
RIVERSIDE – A 24-year-old Riverside resident was shot by police after he allegedly tried to ram two police officers during a pursuit of a stolen car Monday, Dec. 26. The early-morning incident began in the area of Orange Street and Spruce Street about 12:16 a.m.
Two Riverside police officers were on patrol when they observed a man, who was later identified as Ryan Michael Rodriguez, in a vehicle that had been reported stolen.
When the officers attempted to stop Rodriguez he accelerated away from them at a high rate of speed. The officers then initiated a vehicle pursuit, according to Riverside Police Public Information Officer Ryan Railsback.
During the pursuit, Rodriguez lost control of the stolen vehicle he was driving and hit the southwest curb of Main Street at the intersection of Spruce Street.
“The suspect vehicle crashed into a curb, stopping,” Railsback explained. Our officers set up for a high-risk felony stop and gave the suspect numerous commands to exit the vehicle.”
Numbered markers indicate evidence that was photographed and collected after the shooting. William Hayes photo
At that point, Rodriguez “put the car in reverse and accelerated towards the officers,” Railsback said. “Fearing for their safety (the officers) fired their handguns at him.”
“After that, the suspect took off in his vehicle again,” Railsback stated. The pursuit continued westbound on Spruce Street.
Rodriguez eventually lost control while attempting to make a left turn onto Northbend Street just south of Spruce Street. After losing control, Rodriguez crashed the stolen car into a mailbox, at which time the vehicle became disabled. Rodriguez then fled on foot into the neighborhood, leading to a search.
Leyla, who declined to provide her last name, lives on the street where Rodriguez was later found. She said she had just gotten home and was getting settled in when she heard the pursuit enter her neighborhood.
Ryan Rodriguez abandoned his stolen car after he was shot by officers. William Hayes photo
“I heard a whole bunch of gunshots,” Leyla recalled, “Then all of a sudden a whole bunch of police cars came from everywhere.”
As the search for Rodriguez was getting underway, Leyla said she went outside to see what was happening. She was told by an officer to go back into her home for her own safety and barricade herself inside her residence.
“I was by myself and I was scared so I called my neighbor,” Leyla recalled.
Within minutes her entire neighborhood was swarming with officers searching for Rodriguez.
Vanessa Eleias, another resident who lives on the street where Rodriguez was located, said she was woken by a helicopter circling over her residence.
“I heard officers telling someone to come out and that they were surrounded,” Eleias said.
Rodriguez was eventually found hiding inside a Ford Bronco in the backyard of a residence on Northbend Street.
A forensic technician photographs the scene and collects evidence. William Hayes photo
“With the help of our K9 officer and our other officers, they were able to locate the suspect hiding in a car on someone’s property,” Railsback explained. Officers on the ground were also assisted by the department’s aviation unit.
While officers were taking Rodriguez into custody, they learned he had been was struck by a bullet in the upper body.
“He suffered a non-life-threatening, through and through wound,” Railsback said. “He was taken to a local hospital for treatment and he was later booked into the Riverside County Jail.”
After Rodriguez was located hiding on a property three houses away from her residence Leyla saw him being treated by paramedics.
“I seen the guy. He was on a stretcher and they were treating him for his wounds,” Leyla said.
Several of the stolen cars windows were shot out by officers. William Hayes photo
Detectives from the department’s Robbery – Homicide Unit responded to location and assumed the investigation. They were assisted by technicians from the Forensic Unit and representatives from the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.
Eleias said nothing like this had ever happened where she lived and she described her neighborhood as “very, very quiet.”
“Every now and then we get helicopters in the area, but other than that it is very quiet,” Eleias said.
A jail record search revealed Rodriguez was booked in the Robert Presley Detention Center on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent, and recklessly evading a police officer. He is being held in lieu of $100,000 and is scheduled to be arraigned at the Riverside Hall of Justice Friday, Dec. 29.
Anyone with information about this investigation is encouraged to contact Detective Michael O’Boyle at (951) 353-7213 or Detective Dave Smith at (951) 353-7103. Callers can remain anonymous.
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Trevor Montgomery spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including the Robert Presley Detention Center, the Southwest Station in Temecula, the Hemet Station, and the Lake Elsinore Station, along with many other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, Personnel and Background Investigations and he finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.