A manhunt continues more than 24 hours after an officer opened fire on a driver identified as a parolee wanted in a connection with a drive-by shooting report involving his ex-girlfriend.
Police opened fire after the suspect got out of his car with an assault rifle during a traffic stop Wednesday.
No arrests have been reported and the search for the suspect continued Thursday morning following the altercation in the 900 block of East Mesa Drive in Rialto. No officers were injured.
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An officer saw two vehicles early Wednesday traveling at a "high rate of speed" in what appeared to be a "road rage incident" and tried to pull over the drivers, identified as Darnell White III and an ex-girlfriend, according to police. White III got out of one of the vehicles, a red Nissan, with the weapon, according to police.
"One of the drivers exited with a fully loaded assault rifle in his hand," according to a statement from the Rialto Police Department. "The officer believed he was about to be fired upon and fired multiple rounds at the suspect."
White III was likely injured in the officer-involved shooting, according to police.
Aerial video showed several evidence markers, possibly indicating the locations of bullet casings, outside two vehicles in a neighborhood cul-de-sac. The weapon was left in the vehicle and later recovered by police.
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White ran into the ex-girlfriend's nearby residence and the Inland Valley SWAT responded to the location, police said. Officers searched the residence, but did not locate the man, police said.
"There's evidence that leads us to believe he is injured from the shooting and is close by," said Rialto Police Capt. Randy De Anda.
A woman who lives in the area said she heard four gunshots and recognized the car.
White was believed to have been connected to an earlier shooting report in the 2800 block of Demeter Place in Jurupa Valley. No one was hurt.
White's family told NBC4 they hope for a safe return.
"I don’t know what to believe, I just hope and pray that my husband is alright," White's wife said. "I don’t think my husband would ever hurt anybody."
