California SWAT Officer killed while serving warrant in motorcycle gang investigation

(KTTV)

A SWAT member from a city in Los Angeles County who was shot in the back of the head while serving a warrant has died at a nearby hospital, local officials said.

Pomona police SWAT Officer Shaun Diamond was hospitalized at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena after he was shot in the head by David Martinez during a predawn search warrant raid on his home in connection to an investigation into a local motorcycle gang.

"It is with a heavy heart that we must deliver the news that early this morning Pomona police SWAT Officer Shaun Diamond had succumbed to his injuries," the Pomona Police Department said in a statement Wednesday, according to the Los Angeles Times.

A sheriff's department spokeswoman Nicole Nishida said that Martinez was taken into custody and that no other suspects were being sought in connection with the shooting.

Diamond was part of a task force targeting motorcycle gang activity, according to Nishida. When officers made entry at the home on San Marino Avenue, they were immediately met with gunfire, Nishida said.

More On This...

Diamond was an eight-year veteran of the Pomona Police Department, and has six years of service with the SWAT team, a Pomona police lieutenant said. He trained new recruits and worked with the Downtown District Enforcement Team along with volunteering in police outreach efforts at Special Olympics events and participated in SWAT demonstrations for schoolchildren.

Nishida said that Martinez was not hurt during the confrontation and that charges against him were pending.

Diamond is the fourth California law enforcement officer to be killed in the line of duty in less than a week.

Prosecutors filed murder charges Tuesday against two Utah residents in the slayings of two California sheriff's deputies during a shooting rampage that also left a motorist and a third deputy wounded. The same day a Ventura County Sheriff's Deputy was killed on the 101 Freeway when he was hit by a motorist who authorities said was a DUI suspect.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.