A deputy from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department was shot and killed in Jurupa Valley Thursday afternoon. The suspected gunman was killed following a chase with law enforcement.
The deputy has been identified as 32-year-old Isaiah Cordero.
During a press conference Thursday night, authorities identified the gunman as William Shea McKay, 44.
McKay had an “extensive criminal history” including charges of kidnapping, robbery and multiple assaults, including the stabbing of a California Highway Patrol K-9.
McKay is believed to have shot Deputy Cordero around 2:00 p.m. on the 3900 block of Golden West Avenue during a traffic stop.
Cordero was hit an undisclosed amount of times and McKay fled the scene in a pickup truck. Residents of the neighborhood called 911 and administered first aid until paramedics arrived to transport the deputy to the hospital where he was later declared dead.
The shooting led to a massive manhunt that spanned both Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Once authorities were able to identify McKay as the suspect, a mass alert went out to neighboring law enforcement agencies.
He was eventually located by officers and dozens of law enforcement vehicles pursued his dark-colored pickup truck, believed to be a Chevrolet Silverado, southbound on the 15 Freeway. The chase came to an end in Norco just below a freeway overpass.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said McKay fired at law enforcement, who returned fire. The suspect was hit by gunfire and died at the scene.
Video from Sky5 showed multiple law enforcement vehicles surrounding the pickup, which was disabled after crashing onto the shoulder of the freeway. Bullet holes were visible on the vehicle’s windshield.
All southbound traffic on the 15 Freeway was being diverted off at Limonite Avenue where the pursuit came to a conclusion. The far left lanes of the northbound side of the freeway were also closed for an indeterminate amount of time.
As of 8:15 p.m., those road closures remained in place.
Law enforcement officers from various agencies gathered at Riverside Community Hospital to take part in a procession for the fallen deputy, whose body was being transported to the county’s coroner’s office.
The Riverside Sheriff’s Association, the union that represents employees of the Sheriff’s Department, was the first to identify the fallen deputy as Isaiah Cordero.
“Today, Deputy Cordero made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty — a debt that can never be repaid,” the union wrote in a release.
Chris Barajas, mayor of Jurupa Valley wrote on social media that his “thoughts are with [Cordero’s] family and all our law enforcement community.”
Barajas urged the public to avoid the area of Golden West Avenue and Condor Drive where the deputy was fatally shot.
The two crime scenes remained active well into Thursday evening.
