Sheriff releases bodycam video, details of fatal shooting in Modesto industrial park
Body-camera video released Wednesday shows the fatal shooting of a man by sheriff’s deputies in the Beard Industrial District last week.
Eloy Mares Gonzalez Jr., 41, was wielding a hatchet and refusing orders to surrender when he was shot around 5 a.m. Sept. 27, the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department said.
Deputies Chad Lewis and Brandon Silva fired the fatal shots, Sgt. Luke Schwartz said by phone Wednesday. They were assigned to administrative duties pending three investigations into the shooting.
The video was published on the department’s Facebook page with an introduction and concluding remarks by Sheriff Jeff Dirkse. It contains graphic footage of the shooting as well as profanity.
Predawn response to burglar alarm
Deputies had responded to a burglar alarm at a building on the 800 block of Business Park Drive, in the southwest part of the sprawling Beard complex. The video shows deputies confronting Gonzalez at an outside wall, illuminated in the predawn darkness by their flashlights.
Over several minutes, they ask him to raise his hands and later to lie on his abdomen. They also deploy “less than lethal” devices and a sheriff’s K-9 on him. The video shows Tasers, but it is not clear that they were used.
Rodriguez then appears to wrestle with deputies, and several shots are fired. The hatchet he had swung at them was found nearby, the department said.
Three probes into what happened
Gonzalez was treated by deputies and paramedics at the scene, then transported to a local hospital, where he died. Two unidentified deputies were treated for injuries and released.
The three investigations follow the protocol for officer-involved shootings. One is by the sheriff’s Crimes Against Persons unit. The department’s Internal Affairs unit will look into whether policies were violated. The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office will review whether the shooting was justified.
People with information about the case can contact Detective Veronica Esquivez at 209-567-4466.
This story was originally published October 7, 2020 at 2:19 PM.
