New details emerged Monday about the former firefighter accused of going on a violent rampage over the weekend in Riverside County, and his victims.
Police said James Paul Diaz randomly shot and killed two men and terrorized several others before finally being arrested in the city of Beaumont.
"He was a good man. He helped me all the time and he helped anyone else he could help," said Wanda Johnson, remembering her son Benjamin, a lifelong Banning resident who family members call a wonderful giving man.
"Need something repaired, something moved. He was that kind of a guy," his cousin Duane Johnson said.
On Saturday, Benjamin Johnson was driving a white truck, when police say James Paul Diaz randomly shot and killed him, just a few blocks from Johnson's home.
"He had just repaired a table for his ex-wife and he was taking it over to her I believe," Duane Johnson said.
Coincidentally, Johnson's truck ended up crashing into the same parking lot where his late father used to park his street sweeper when he worked for the city of Banning.
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In another cruel twist, Johnson lived with his mother in this home right next door to the jail where Diaz is currently being held.
"I just wish (Diaz) would have killed himself instead," Wanda Johnson said.
Diaz is also accused of shooting and killing 66-year-old Paul Joey Lesh and also beating a man at an Am/Pm.
"He seemed crazed, like out of it,” said Tara Shawn Ruehle, who said Diaz tried to take her two small children. “Like manic, like on a mission for something."
Ruehle said at one point Diaz tried to take her two children who were inside a car at a Beaumont church.
She said Diaz broke out a car window, claiming her kids were his before police showed up and arrested him.
"I really feel bad for the effect it's having on his family,” Ruehle said. “I can't imagine what his children will be going through."
Neighbors say for the past six years, Diaz has lived at a Hemet home with his wife and three small children.
CalFire confirmed he was a seasonal firefighter who resigned in April — two days before he was supposed to be terminated for undisclosed reasons.
Friends said he would sometimes drink and argue with his wife, but never showed any signs of violence.
"He's a good person inside,” said Marina Alfonso. “I don't know what got into him."
Earlier this year, Diaz was convicted of driving under the influence. He now he faces several charges, including two counts of murder.
