Behind the Badge
Two men are in custody and a female suspect is being sought in connection to an attempted murder, assault and kidnapping of a man Tuesday in Anaheim, police said Wednesday.
One of the male suspects was shot by an Anaheim Police officer during a foot pursuit and was transported to a local hospital. He is in critical condition.
A firearm was recovered at the scene and the officer was wearing a body camera.
APD investigators suspect the assault was related to gang activity.
At about 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 23, officers responded to a report of an assault involving a gun that had just occurred in the 1800 block of W. Neighbors Avenue.
The victim told officers he was assaulted and taken against his will by two men and a woman.
The victim said one man was armed with a handgun, the other man was armed with a knife and the woman was armed with a club or similar instrument.
The male suspects were positively identified as Frank Velasquez, 25, and Alan Osvaldo Reza-Palamino, 20, both of Anaheim, the APD said in a news release Wednesday.
At 10:35 p.m. Tuesday, Velasquez and Reza-Palamino were seen entering a vehicle as passengers at the same location as the reported assault. A male unrelated to the initial investigation was driving the vehicle.
Officers, along with investigators from the Anaheim Police Department Crime Task Force, Gang Detail, and Field Services Division, tried to stop the vehicle to arrest the suspects.
However, the vehicle failed to stop and a slow-speed pursuit ensued in the surrounding neighborhood.
The pursuit ended after officers implemented a pursuit intervention technique at the intersection of La Palma Avenue and Mohican Avenue, according to the news release.
Reza-Palamino immediately ran from the vehicle with officers giving chase by foot.
The officer-involved shooting occurred during the pursuit and Reza-Palamino was struck.
Reza-Palamino is in police custody at the hospital and will be booked on suspicion of attempted murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, brandishing a firearm, possession of a concealed firearm by a gang member, and gang enhancements. His bail is $500,000.
Velasquez will be booked at the Anaheim Detention Facility on suspicion of attempted murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and gang enhancements and will be held in lieu of $500,000 bail.
The female suspect is still being sought.
Several concurrent investigations regarding the incident are under way, involving APD Homicide detectives, Major Incident Review Team investigators, the Office of Independent Review, and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
