Motorist Is Attacked Amid Protest of Police Shooting

Members of a crowd that had gathered late Tuesday outside Fountain Valley police headquarters to protest the shooting death of a friend attacked a motorist after he drove into a nearby gas station, police said Wednesday.

The 44-year-old Fountain Valley man, who was not identified, was taken to Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center, where he was treated for broken ribs and cuts on his back and knees, police said.

Police said protesters blocked the man’s car as he tried to turn onto Slater Avenue at Brookhurst Street about 10:20 p.m. Tuesday.

When the man drove into a gas station at that intersection, he was attacked by several protesters, who yanked him out of his car, punched and kicked him, Fountain Valley Police Sgt. Kevin Thomas said.

But one protester had a different version.

Jeffrey Willingham, 23, of Huntington Beach said the man nearly ran over his girlfriend and another friend as he made the turn. The driver then got out of his car at the gas station and started yelling at the crowd of about 50 demonstrators, many of whom were holding signs.

“He instigated everything,” Willingham said. “He jumps out of the car and starts cursing at us.” Several bystanders stopped the attack. Protesters then kicked and dented the man’s car, broke a mirror and shattered a window as he drove off, police said.

No arrests were made because protesters had fled before officers arrived, Thomas said.

The demonstration began after two officers fatally shot Jason Velarde, 23, of Fountain Valley on Monday night.

Velarde had placed a 911 call to police but hung up on the dispatcher, who sent officers to his San Bruno Street home, officials said. When two officers arrived, Velarde got a knife and confronted the officers, who fired, police said.