Two men arrested after allegedly shooting at off-duty L.A. County deputy in San Bernardino

Two 18-year-old men were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder Monday after firing multiple shots at an off-duty Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy for unknown reasons, police said.

The San Bernardino Police Department on Tuesday identified the two men as Jeremiah Cook and Eric Bell.

Cook and Bell opened fire from an open sunroof about 1:47 p.m. as the deputy drove behind them in the 4300 block of North Mountain View Avenue, according to a police department statement. The deputy returned fire on the men’s vehicle, police said.

After the shooting, Cook and Bell drove away and the deputy pulled over to report the incident.

Later, police found Cook and their vehicle in 1900 block of North D Street. Two handguns were found inside the vehicle, according to the department.

Nearly an hour later, police received a call from workers at a nearby hospital. According to hospital workers, Bell came into the emergency room to seek treatment for multiple gunshot wounds to his back.

“Bell was uncooperative and attempted to flee the hospital but he was detained by law enforcement and after receiving medical attention,” the police department in the statement.

It is unclear why the men fired at the deputy.

On Monday, police spokeswoman Eileen Hards said the deputy and two suspects were involved “in an altercation.”

The deputy’s name was not released.

Nearby resident Jonathan Albin told the Riverside Press-Enterprise that his car was struck by gunfire, with a bullet piercing his windshield. He told the paper that he heard a total of 11 gunshots.

matt.hamilton@latimes.com

Twitter: @MattHjourno

UPDATES:

1:05 p.m. Jan. 10: This article was updated with the identities of the suspects and more details about the shooting.

This article was originally published at 7:15 p.m. on Jan. 9.