Dumped behind a 7-11, DHS teen shot while burglarizing elderly man’s Yucaipa home

YUCAIPA — Officials investigating last Saturday’s shooting of a 16-year-old Desert Hot Springs juvenile announced today that they have determined the boy was shot by an elderly man while the teen and three other subjects were attempting to burglarize the 69-year-old victim’s Yucaipa residence.

The bloody teen was found with a gunshot wound to his abdomen early Saturday evening, July 14, behind a Yucaipa 7-11 located at the intersection of Yucaipa Blvd. and 14th St. Detectives later determined the teen’s three unidentified accomplices dropped the injured boy behind the business shortly after he had been shot.

No arrests have been made yet, but according to sheriff’s officials both the teen and elderly attempted burglary victim could be facing criminal charges related to the incident. Officials are still searching for the teen’s three accomplices, described as two Black males and a Black female.

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Deputies assigned to the Yucaipa Police Station and other emergency first responders were dispatched to the 7-11 just before 6:15 p.m., after a 911 caller reported finding a 16-year-old male with a gunshot wound to his abdomen.

When officials arrived they found a Black male juvenile who had been dumped behind the business after sustaining a gunshot injury. AMR medics rushed the victim to Loma Linda University Medical Center where he immediately underwent surgery. He remains hospitalized in stable condition, according to officials.

During their initial investigation, authorities determined three of the teen’s acquaintances had dropped him, bleeding and injured, behind the 7-11 before speeding away in a Ford Mustang GT.

As their investigation was beginning, detectives learned about an attempted burglary of a private residence on 33000 block of Wallace Way in Yucaipa, after the 69-year-old victim reported the incident.

Although the elderly victim reported the attempted burglary about thirty minutes after it happened, the man failed to disclose the shooting to officials investigating the incident. The home is located about a mile and a half from the business where the boy had been dropped off just minutes after the shooting.

Citing their ongoing investigation, the age of the teen, and the safety of the 69-year-old victim, neither the boy or elderly man have been identified publicly by officials.

As their investigation continued, detectives served a search warrant yesterday at the homeowner’s residence and located evidence that confirmed he fired his weapon at the suspects.

Detectives also located the Mustang driven by the four alleged suspects of the attempted burglary and served a search warrant on the vehicle in the City of Indio. According to officials, while detectives searched the vehicle they located evidence related to the attempted burglary.

Detectives eventually determined the teenager had been shot while he and the other suspects attempted to force entry into the victim’s home through a backyard window. Just as the alleged burglars were gaining entry into the residence, they were confronted by the elderly homeowner, who had armed himself with a handgun.

As the suspects attempted to flee from the residence, the homeowner fired one round at them, striking the teen in the abdomen.

At the conclusion of their investigation, detectives will be presenting their findings to the District Attorney’s Office for review and determination if any criminal charges will be filed against the burglary suspects or the homeowner, Yucaipa sheriff’s officials explained in an updated press release.

Anyone with information about this investigation is encouraged to contact Deputy Coillot with the Yucaipa Police and Sheriff at (909) 918-2305. Anonymous reports can be made via WeTip by calling 1-800-78-CRIME.

James Hensley/News Now Yucaipa video

 

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Trevor Montgomery, 47, recently moved to Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations, including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook, as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and The Mountain Echo in Shasta County.

Trevor 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, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.