California investigators have arrested and charged a man in connection with the shooting of two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies earlier this month as they sat in their squad car, authorities said Wednesday.
Attempted murder charges were filed against Deonte Lee Murray, 36, District Attorney Jackie Lacey told reporters.
Murray, a resident of the city of Compton, where the shooting happened, was arrested two weeks ago in connection with a separate carjacking and he was expected to be arraigned later Wednesday on charges in both cases. Prosecutors planned to request for bail of $6.15 million.
Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau Capt. Kent Wegener, who provided details about the investigation, did not suggest a specific motive for the attack “other than the fact that he obviously hates policemen and he wants them dead.”
The deputies suffered head wounds in the Sept. 12 ambush and have since been released from the hospital and are recovering. Sheriff Alex Villanueva said, however, that they face further reconstructive surgeries and that their recoveries will be a long process.
Surveillance video showed a person walking toward the patrol car, parked at a Metro rail station and firing a handgun through the passenger-side window. The deputies radioed for help despite their wounds.
The deputies, a 31-year-old woman and 24-year-old man who have not been identified publicly, graduated together from the sheriff’s academy 14 months ago…