Dennis RomeroPolice searching the home and vehicle of Daniel Christopher Yealu, a 29-year-old suspected of opening fire inside an LAPD police station last night, turned up at least four assault-type rifles, a long gun, two semiautomatic handguns, five boxes of ammunition and more than two-dozen clips for reloading.
See also: LAPD Officer Injured After Shots Fired at Police Station
One of the assault-type weapons was found in the suspect's car, parked near the station, police said. Speaking to reporters today, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said, “By the grace of God, the suspect did not come in with the assault weapons that he has had access to.”
The motive for the attack was unknown and …
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… at least for now, detectives are not linking this to an ambush shooting outside the same station last year that injured two detectives, Officer Bruce Borihanh told us.
See also: LAPD Detectives Shot in Ambush at Wilshire Division
Despite previous police statements to the contrary, the officer who was hit by the suspect's gunfire at the West Traffic Division front desk last night was not wearing a ballistic vest.
Credit: With permission from the LAPD
The cop was reportedly interviewed by fellow officers this morning and revealed that he was not sporting body armor, though it had been assumed he had worn it – given the number of times he was hit.
He was hit seven times and “returned fire and saved his own life and the life of his partner,” Beck said last night.
The officer was recovering at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in stable condition, police said.
The suspect was hospitalized in critical condition after being hit by return fire, police said. He was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, Borihanh said.
L.A. County Sheriff's Department inmate data indicates Yealu was booked at 5:19 a.m. and was being held in lieu of $2 million bail.
Credit: With permission from the LAPD
Police allege the man walked up to the West Traffic Division front desk, inside the LAPD's West Bureau, which includes the Wilshire Division, and opened fire.
It happened about 8 p.m. at 4861 Venice Blvd. in Mid-City, cops said.
An Olympic Park Neighborhood Council gathering was happening in an adjacent community meeting room and, although one witness said a round pierced the door, no one else was reported injured.
Credit: With permission from the LAPD
Police served a search warrant on the man's home and found the weapons and ammo later put on display for media covering Beck's news conference today.
A bomb squad was dispatched last night to ensure that a car which cops had linked to the suspect was not booby-trapped. It wasn't, but cops say they found what could be considered a backup rifle inside.
[Added at 2:38 p.m.]: Yealu had a security guard firearms permit from late 2007 through the end of last year, according to state Bureau of Security and Investigative Services records.
The suspect's dad told the Los Angeles Times today that Yealu aspired to be a cop.
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