Blue ribbons were tied around posts and woven into fences in Pomona Tuesday night, in tribute to a police SWAT officer who was shot and killed while serving a search warrant during a motorcycle gang investigation.
On Oct. 28, 45-year-old Pomona Officer Shaun Diamond, who patrolled downtown in addition to being a SWAT member, was shot just after 4 a.m. in the 100 block of San Marino Avenue. Officials confirmed the next day that he had died at the Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena.
He was described by colleagues as a "top-notch guy" who served eight years with the Pomona Police Department.
Community members held a vigil for Diamond Tuesday night, many of whom said they knew and respected him.
"We have over 300 businesses down here and every one of them knew him," said Larry Egan, director of the Pomona Downtown Association. "So he did a great job and of course we're all saddened by this."
Downtown business owner Carolyn Hemming also said the business community came to appreciate Diamond.
"I thought I don't know about a SWAT officer downtown, but he mellowed over time and everybody got to know him and everybody got to love him," she said.
The Pomona Police Officer's Association organized Tuesday’s vigil to honor one of their own, but many business owners also started to show up to pay tribute to the man whom they say had two sides -- the kind man and the protector.
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"The merchants saw both Officer Diamonds," Hemming said. "They saw the one who was very friendly and helped the merchants and people, then they saw the officer Diamond who kept us safe."
Diamond’s funeral has been scheduled for Thursday morning.
The suspect in the case, 36-year-old David Martinez, faces capital murder charges.
