Two burglary suspects were killed Thursday in an officer-involved shooting in Santa Ana, about three miles from where an officer-involved gun battle a day earlier left another suspect wounded and a detective with a graze injury to his head.
No officers were injured in Thursday's shooting, which was reported about 5:30 p.m. in the 1100 block of East Fourth Street, according to Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna.
It was not immediately clear what led up to the shooting. Two other suspects were taken into custody, according to a report from the scene, where the suspects' covered bodies were visible.
All four were known gang members, Bertagna said. There was a weapon recovered at the scene.
"We thought it was a drive-by but actually it wasn't. We came out here and we heard that there was a shooting with policemen. There was a guy on the ground," said a neighbor who did not want to be identified.
The shooting occurred about three miles from the 2700 block of West McFadden Avenue, where Wednesday's gun battle occurred. Carlos Michael Rodriguez, 30, of Santa Ana, a documented gang member who was paroled Sept. 27 after eight years in prison for assault with a gun on a Santa Ana police officer, remains hospitalized as a result of injuries he suffered in Wednesday's gun battle.
Rodriguez is suspected of opening fire on a detective who approached him during a "proactive enforcement" in the area, which has seen a rash of gang violence in recent weeks, Bertagna said.
News
Top news of the day
The suspect was allegedly armed with two guns.
Rodriguez was booked on suspicion of attempted murder of a police officer. It was not immediately clear if the two shootings were related.
There have been more than 50 shootings in Santa Ana so far this year and three officer-involved shooting, officials said.
