Suspect in critical condition after he’s shot by police in Anaheim

Two men were arrested following a chase in Anaheim on Tuesday night that ended with one of the suspects being shot and critically wounded by a police officer.

The suspects, 25-year-old Frank Velasquez and 20-year-old Alan-Osvaldo Reza-Palamino, were wanted on suspicion of attempted murder, kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and brandishing a firearm, according to the Anaheim Police Department.

Following a slow-speed vehicle pursuit that began at about 10:35 p.m., Reza-Palamino ran from a vehicle at the intersection of La Palma and Mohican avenues and police followed him on foot. Reza-Palamino was shot at least once in the torso by an officer and then transported to a hospital where he remains in police custody.

Around noon Wednesday, the Police Department reported that Reza-Palamino was in critical but stable condition and required additional surgery, but was expected to survive.

The circumstances of the shooting were unclear, but police said a firearm was recovered from the scene. The officer was wearing a body camera and the footage will be reviewed by the Orange County district attorney’s office as part of their investigation of the incident, according to a press statement.

Just before 6 p.m. Tuesday, Anaheim police responded to a report of an assault that occurred in the 1800 block of West Neighbors Avenue. A male adult victim said that two men carrying a knife and handgun and a woman armed with a club-like weapon dragged him out of his house and assaulted him. The motive for the crime is not known, but gang involvement is suspected, according to authorities.

Police are still looking for the female suspect, but identified the two men as Velasquez and Reza-Palamino.

“The two male suspects were known in the area and known to our gang detectives,” said Sgt. Daron Wyatt, public information officer for the Anaheim Police Department. “They knew the suspects would likely return to the area.”

Police set up surveillance, and around 10:30 p.m., Velasquez and Reza-Palamino were seen getting into a car driven by a man, unrelated to the original investigation, near the location of the assault. The vehicle failed to stop for police and a pursuit at speeds of 10 to 15 mph ensued. Police eventually stopped the suspects by using a police vehicle to make contact with theirs, causing it to spin out.

When the car came to stop, Reza-Palamino ran to a breezeway at 1769 W. La Palma Ave., where the shooting occurred.

Both Velasquez and Reza-Palamino were arrested on multiple felony counts and are being held in lieu of $500,000 bail.

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