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LONG BEACH, Calif. – Authorities arrested a 77-year-old man a few hours after a shootout in a retirement home in southern California, leaving a dead fire captain and two other injured people Monday morning, officials said.
Captain Dave Rosa, 45, a 17-year veteran at the Long Beach Fire Department, was shot and wounded in a fire, according to the agency.
Police arrested a person of interest and fetched a weapon, said Long Beach Police Chief Robert Luna. During a press conference later, investigators identified this person as Thomas Kim, a 77-year-old man who lived at the retirement home, according to KTLA.
Kim was arrested and charged with murder, two counts of attempted murder and arson, said Luna. He was held on bail of $ 2 million.
Long Beach firefighter Capt Dave Rosa is seen in a photo released on June 25, 2018 by the Long Beach Fire Department.
A group of firefighters responded after two devices deemed suspicious were found, said Luna. He did not specify where the devices were seen. Officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also on the scene.
The fire department reacted to a report of a fire alarm at 600 E. Fourth St. around 3:49 am, said Long Beach Fire Department spokesman Jake Heflin. . A retirement home called Covenant Manor was listed under this address.
Officials arrived at the multi-storey building and discovered blown windows and an activated jet, Heflin said.
Firefighters found the fire and extinguished it at 3:59 am, but they continued to assess the area because of the reports of an explosion and the smell of the fire. ; gasoline.
Around 4:08 am, Rosa and another firefighter were shot dead, according to firefighters.
Heflin identified the second firefighter as Ernesto Torres. He was taken to St. Mary's Medical Center in Long Beach and was released Monday morning, Heflin said.
Rosa, who has served as a fire captain for the past 6 1/2 years, has left behind a woman and two children, said the fire department.
"You go to these scenes and you never know what's on the other side of these doors," Luna said at a press conference Monday morning. "These brave firemen went through these gates and unfortunately they were met with shots."
Police said that an elderly man fired "during the chaos" had to undergo surgery and was last enrolled in a stable but critical condition. The police chief stated that the man was a resident of the institution.
Earlier, the fire department said that one of the firefighters was in critical condition and the other suffered nonfatal injuries.
Firefighters greet the van carrying Long Beach fire captain Dave Rosa, during which the cortege goes to the coroner's office on June 25, 2018. (Credit: KTLA)
Around 8:00 am, a "last call" was issued on the communication system of the officials after Rosa did not answer a call. The message was signed with a traditional Irish blessing: "Let the sun shine on its path, let the wind always be on its back, and let the Lord keep it in the palm of his hands until we meet again. ".
Officials escorted Rosa's body in a procession from St. Mary's to the coroner's office via Highway 710. Along the way, first responders saluted the van carrying the captain's body. firefighters.
Rick Convay, a resident of the building, told KTLA that four other people had seen the gunman before leaving the premises.
"As soon as we got to the stairwell, we heard a shot," Convay said. "The man who fired the gun was sitting right down the stairs with the gun in his hand and shouted at the rest of the people," He has a gun! " Someone shouted "a gun." We went straight back to the door. "
In a cell phone video provided by a viewer, a sound that looks like a shot is heard as a fire alarm goes off.
Authorities react to an incident in a Long Beach retirement home that caused the death of a firefighter on June 25, 2018. (Credit: Dan Sherman)
Dan Rafferty, who recorded the footage, said that he woke up to the alarm and that he saw several firefighters and police in the area.
Rafferty said that he heard a total of three shots and shouted. Rafferty said that he saw a paramedic with a possible bullet wound.
"[The paramedic was] not even on the stretcher. They just raised it and carried it, "Rafferty said.
Gina Kim told KTLA that she had heard fire trucks pass by and that she had helped people from the nursing home cross the street when she heard "two loud booms".
The authorities closed Atlantic Avenue between Fourth and Fifth Streets in response to the retirement home. Outside of St. Mary's medical center, a flag flew to half the staff.
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