Search continuing for man after hours-long Hemet standoff
HEMET, Calif. — Authorities are continuing to search for a man who managed to elude capture despite an hours-long standoff that happened at a Hemet RV park in the 3600 block of W. Florida, Thursday, Sept. 10.
Although the standoff, which took place at the Golden Village Palms RV Resort, caused the park to be shut down for about ten hours, when officials finally entered the fifth-wheel where the man was believed to be hiding he was not found.
The lengthy standoff was one of two that occurred within the San Jacinto valley on Thursday. The other SWAT incident ended with the arrest of a San Jacinto man who was arrested and later booked into jail on a variety of charges related to child sex crimes.
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At about 11:30 a.m., City of Hemet police officers responded to the RV park to assist Riverside County sheriff’s investigators searching for a man who fled from officials.
The suspect was believed to be armed with a firearm and barricaded inside a fifth wheel trailer inside the park, Hemet Police Cpt. J. Davis has since reported.
Although officials have not released the suspect’s name, in video filmed at the scene (which can be viewed below) SWAT members can be heard hailing an Anthony Fleming, telling him the trailer was surrounded and ordering him to exit the vehicle. However, it was not immediately known if Fleming was the suspect or a different person who resided within the trailer.
As the standoff continued, officials discharged several flashbangs and fired chemical irritants into a fifth wheel trailer where an armed man was suspected to be hiding. The suspect was later determined to not be inside the trailer. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photo
Based on the circumstances, Southwest Cities Special Operations Unit/SWAT, which is comprised of the cities of Hemet, Murrieta, and Menifee Police Departments, joined Riverside County sheriff’s officials and assumed tactical control of the incident.
During the subsequent standoff, officials brought a command center and at least three armored tactical rescue vehicles to the RV park and heavily armed SWAT and SOU members could be seen taking up tactical positions surrounding the trailer and area. A Sheriff’s helicopter also circled overhead during much of the incident.
Although some residents in the immediate area surrounding the trailer were evacuated, other residents within the park were ordered to stay inside their residences. Others who lived in the park but were not there when the incident began were not allowed back into the park, according to area residents.
Over the next ten hours, while sheriff’s investigators continued their investigation, officials made countless attempts to contact the suspect and coax him from where he was believed to be hiding in the trailer.
As darkness fell, area residents and community reporters at the scene reported hearing several flash bangs and reported seeing officials firing chemical irritants into the trailer, before SWAT made entry into the vehicle.
After entering the trailer officials found it to be empty and the suspect was not located.
Anyone with information about this investigation or who knows the suspect’s current whereabouts is encouraged to call 911 or contact Riverside County Sheriff’s Investigator Martinez at (951)791-3400. Callers can remain anonymous.
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Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents photos above, video below.
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Trevor Montgomery, 48, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, (the now defunct) Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and 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.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.
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