Vallejo Police Officer Shoots, Kills Suspected Looter: PD

VALLEJO, CA — The Vallejo Police Department has identified a man who was fatally shot early Tuesday by an officer who was responding to possible looting at a Walgreens. San Francisco resident Sean Monterrosa, 22, died at a local hospital after officers unsuccessfully tried reviving him at the scene, Vallejo police said.

In a statement of its preliminary findings in the officer-involved shooting investigation, the Vallejo Police Department said "officers were responding to a variety of riot-related calls for service" Monday night as unrest continues throughout the United States over the death of George Floyd.

Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died May 25 when former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white man, knelt on his neck for what video shows to have been a time period of nearly nine minutes. Chauvin has since been charged with second-degree murder, and three other officers at the scene were recently arrested in connection with Floyd's death.

As protests and in some cases, looting, has spread across the nation, Vallejo has been among the cities to experience violence.

At 10:17 p.m. Monday, officers were dispatched to reports of possible looting at Walgreens in the 1000 block of Redwood Street.

As officers arrived, the suspected looters fled the scene, Vallejo police said.

About two hours later, at 12:15 a.m. Tuesday, officers were notified that suspected looters had returned to the Walgreens store and were attempting to break into the pharmacy.

At 12:36 a.m., one of the responding officers reported seeing 10-12 potential looters in the parking lot — including a man in front of the Walgreens who was dressed in black and appeared to be armed, Vallejo PD said.

More officers arrived in an unmarked car but in full uniform, and parked on the opposite side of the parking lot. At least one of the officers in the unmarked car reported seeing two potential looters getting into two separate cars full of other suspected looters.

Both cars began to drive out of the parking lot; the first vehicle, a silver truck, drove around the first officer who'd arrived in a marked car, police said.

The second suspect vehicle, a black-colored sedan, reportedly rammed into the initial responding patrol car, which caused the airbag to be deployed, and the vehicle to be disabled, according to Vallejo PD.

The officer was injured in the crash that appeared to be intentional, police said.

As both cars left the scene, a separate pursuit was initiated. The suspect in the silver truck were apprehended in Contra Costa County but the black sedan was not stopped, police said.

Simultaneous to these events, Vallejo PD said the officers who were second to arrive at the scene for the original looting call saw a man wearing black hooded sweatshirt standing alone on the east side of the Walgreens building.

"The officers saw this individual begin running toward the black sedan when he stopped and abruptly turned toward the officers, crouching down in a half-kneeling position as if in preparation to shoot, and moving his hands toward his waist area near what appeared to be the butt of a handgun," Vallejo PD said.

"Investigations later revealed that the weapon was a long, 15-inch hammer, tucked into the pocket of his sweatshirt," police said.

Because of the perceived threat, one officer fired his weapon five times from inside the police car, through the windshield, striking Monterrosa once, fatally wounding him, Vallejo PD said.

Officers provided first aid until paramedics got there and took Monterrosa by ambulance to local hospital where he was pronounced deceased, police said.

Under the county's protocol for officer-involved shootings, the Vallejo Police Department and Solano County District Attorney’s office are conducting a joint criminal investigation.

Police said Monterrosa had a criminal history of shoplifting, petty theft, illegal weapons violations, assault with a deadly weapon, shooting into an inhabited dwelling, carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle, possession of narcotics for sale and attempted murder.

The officer who discharged his weapon, fatally shooting Monterrosa, was put on paid administrative leave as were the witness officers while an internal affairs investigation is conducted.

Meanwhile, more than $77,000 has been raised through a GoFundMe campaign for Monterossa's funeral and legal expenses. According to the GoFundMe page:

"We are deeply saddened by the loss of our beloved, Sean Monterrosa, who passed away on June 2, 2020. He was a wonderful son, brother, friend who touched the lives of those around him. He was loyal, hard working, and had a heart of gold. He was truly one of a kind.

"Sean was shot and killed by Vallejo PD. We now have civil rights and police brutality attorney, John Burris taking on the case. Half of the fund will go towards funeral arrangements and the other will go towards legal fees. Justice will be served for Sean."

Vallejo police are asking anyone with information about the fatal incident to call Detective Kevin Rose at 707-651-7146 or Detective Craig Long at 707-648-4514.