An off-duty police officer shot a man in a Murrieta parking lot Monday during an apparent argument between two motorists.
The incident was apparently sparked by a road rage incident that turned into an argument between two people, prompting the officer from Hemet to intervene, the Murrieta Police Department announced in a news release.
The shooting was reported just after 9 a.m. in a parking lot at 39540 Murrieta Hot Springs Road. When police responded to the scene for reports of shots being fired, they found a wounded man who was shot multiple times, according to authorities.
The off-duty officer, whose name has not been released, remained at the scene with a group of witnesses. Police learned that during the argument the off-duty officer shot at the man, but there were no details surrounding why he opened fire.
Medical aid was provided to the wounded man and he was taken in an ambulance to a local hospital in critical condition, police said.
The man was listed in stable condition as of Tuesday.
A handgun was recovered at the scene and all shots fired have been accounted for by investigators.
A storefront window was shattered in the shooting, according to reporting from news station KABC.
Video footage recorded by a witnesses shows a man in a baseball cap and a gray shirt pointing a handgun at a man lying on the ground between two vehicles. Witnesses told the news station that the off-duty officer shot the man multiple times and a fake handgun was found on the scene and may have belonged to the man who was shot.
In the video, a woman can be seen screaming and crying on the ground as the off-duty officer stands over her with his gun drawn.
The off-duty officer is cooperating with the investigation, which is in its initial phase, according to Murrieta police.
Police will launch an investigation along with the Riverside County district attorney’s office and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. The district attorney’s office will also conduct an independent review of the shooting.
