Paso Robles shooting suspect is dead following exchange of fire with officers that left multiple officers injured

Advertisement
Paso Robles shooting suspect is dead following exchange of fire with officers that left multiple officers injured
Police cars are seen outside the Halloween party in Orinda, California, on Thursday night.Twitter/DanThorn
  • A suspect in a shooting spree in Paso Robles, California, is dead after a shootout with police, a spokesperson for the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office said.
  • According to local outlets, officers were injured during an exchange of fire with the suspect, on Thursday.
  • A shooting on Wednesday left another deputy injured and a local man dead.
Advertisement

The suspect of a shooting spree in Paso Robles, California, was killed after a manhunt, on Thursday, a spokesperson for the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office said.

Police have identified the suspect as 26-year-old Mason Lira. According to the spokesperson, police responded to reports of shooting at a vineyard and realized the suspect was Lira. Police called on him to surrender, and then he raised his weapon and fired officers, which prompted them to fire back, the police spokesperson said.

Officers initially noticed he was unresponsive and then determined that he was dead. The spokesman could not say how many shots were fired at Lira. Three officers, each from different departments, were injured in the exchange, but are in stable condition.

Lira was the suspect in a Wednesday shooting spree that left one man dead and a police officer injured, CNN reported.

The suspect began shooting at the Paso Robles Police Department building on Wednesday, according to KSBW. The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office told CNN that Deputy Nicholas Dreyfus was injured. According to KSBW, Dreyfus was shot in the face.

Advertisement

The suspect is then alleged to have shot and killed a man at a train station.

On Thursday afternoon, shots were fired in the area of Highway 46 West and Ramada Drive. Police asked everyone to avoid the area.

The motive remains unclear.

Lira's father Jose Lira told the Visalia Times-Delta of the USA TODAY Network on Thursday that his son was mentally ill, "has lived on the streets for many years," and also been in and out of mental health facilities and jail during his adult life.

"With his mental health illness, he doesn't want to be in a room or house, he wanted to be on the streets," Lira's father, Jose Lira, told the newspaper.

Advertisement
{{}}