Saturday, 28 Dec 2024

Costco Shooting Leaves Family of Man Killed by Off-Duty Officer Demanding Answers

The deadly shooting of a man by an off-duty Los Angeles police officer last week at a Costco store in Corona, Calif., has led to calls for the authorities to release more information amid conflicting accounts of what happened.

The man who was killed, Kenneth French, 32, had been shopping with his parents, Paola and Russell French, before the shooting on Friday. They were critically wounded in the shooting, which the Corona police have said came in response to an unprovoked assault of the officer.

Mr. French’s family has called for the arrest of the officer, identified as Salvador Sanchez by The Los Angeles Times. The victim’s cousin, Rick Shureih, who has spoken on behalf of the family, has characterized Mr. French as having a mental disability and being nonverbal, but he did not elaborate on his condition. Mr. French had lived in Riverside, Calif., with his parents.

“When the Corona Police Department finishes its investigation, they will submit the case to our office for review for any and all potential criminal charges,” John Hall, a spokesman for the Riverside County district attorney’s office, said in an email to The New York Times on Monday. “So, at this time, the case is still with Corona police detectives and they are gathering facts and conducting numerous interviews of witnesses. We would ask the public for patience as detectives complete the investigation.”

The Corona Police Department has not released any updates on its investigation since Saturday. The Los Angeles Police Department declined to identify the officer and referred questions to the Corona authorities.

Mr. Shureih disputed the department’s initial account of the confrontation in two Facebook posts that have since been made private.

“My family has faith that you will do the right thing and arrest the gunman!” he posted on Monday, tagging the Corona Police Department. “Our family has witness accounts that do not match up to the original story. We are a pro police family. I have many friends in Law Enforcement. We need justice to prevail! Please review the surveillance tape!”

David Winslow, a lawyer for the officer, told The Los Angeles Times that his client had been shopping with his wife and 18-month-old son when he was knocked to the ground by a large man, later identified as Mr. French, while they were standing in line waiting to taste food samples.

Mr. Winslow, who could not immediately be reached for comment on Tuesday, told The Los Angeles Times that the officer was briefly knocked unconscious.

Dianne Bawit, a 21-year-old student at California State University San Marcos, said she had been shopping for bottled water when she saw a man, who she later learned was the police officer, falling to the ground. She said he had appeared to be in distress.

“He fell pretty hard because I heard a pretty big thump on the ground,” Ms. Bawit said. “He looked like he had a heart attack.”

Ms. Bawit said she initially went to help the officer, but retreated as the altercation escalated.

“He stood up by himself. He pulled out his handgun and starts triggering five to seven shots,” Ms. Bawit said, adding that she was within 10 feet of the men and then took cover. “I was hiding in between the meat aisle, behind the freezer section. I thought I was going to be dead, too.”

On Sunday, Mr. Shureih posted a Facebook photo of his cousin, aunt and uncle at Universal Studios.

“Do they look intimidating to you?” Mr. Shureih wrote. “Did he really have to shoot them all? I’m posting this picture because the stories on social media have made them out to be the suspects, and the off duty cop the victim. This is a family that was unarmed and was just grocery shopping. Truth will come out! I’m sure this was a misunderstanding that got escalated for no reason!”

The shooting on Friday was the first of two episodes of gun violence at Costco locations in California in under 72 hours. A gunman seriously wounded his ex-girlfriend and her current boyfriend in the parking lot of a Chula Vista, Calif., store on Monday before killing himself. The shooting took place about 100 miles from Corona.

Costco issued a statement about Friday’s shooting, but did not discuss the details.

“Our thoughts are with our members who were in the building when this incident occurred,” the company said. “The safety of our members and employees is extremely important to us.”

Neil Vigdor is a breaking news reporter on the Express Desk. He previously covered Connecticut politics for the Hartford Courant. @gettinviggy Facebook

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