The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office with the help of a California Highway Patrol helicopter are investigating a suspected homicide that was reported about 1:45 a.m. in the 59000 block of Bell Springs Road near Laytonville. The first report from the scene by a citizen said the victim was shot and not breathing, according to a dispatcher speaking over the scanner.
Mendocino County Sheriff’s Captain Greg Van Patten told us this morning by text that a deputy “fell and injured himself to the point he needs medical evacuation” while chasing suspects.
Van Patten said that those being pursued were captured but the investigation is ongoing to determine whether they are suspects in the shooting.
A witness, Jacob Whitney tells us that the helicopter landed on Hwy 101 but flew off about 7:50 a.m. He said, “[There are] All sorts of law enforcement vehicles down on the highway.”
UPDATE 8:19 a.m.: Jacob Whitney continues to provide on the ground documentation of the law enforcement response to today’s shooting. In this photo below, Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office deputies and California Highway Patrol officers are gathered on the side of Highway 101.
