Ventura County Sheriff – Incident Press Release
***Update***
In the interest of transparency, the Ventura Police Department has released a critical incident video found at the link below. The video contains information about the vehicle pursuit, police
radio traffic, and body-worn video footage from the officer involved in the shooting. The incident is still under active investigation.
Video link: https://youtu.be/SxSajJtfnkQ
***Update***
Officer Joaquin Ortega is the officer involved in this incident. He is a 23-year veteran of the Ventura Police Department.
***Update***
This pursuit was initiated by the Oxnard Police Department. The suspect of the officer involved shooting was the driver of the vehicle and a suspect of a shooting in the City of Oxnard. During the pursuit, officers successfully deployed spike strips twice, in an effort to disable the vehicle and bring the pursuit to an end. The suspect was in possession of a loaded handgun at the time of the shooting. This was a dynamic event with the critical events happening very quickly. The investigation is still fresh and ongoing. The Ventura Police Department is committed to transparency and openness with our community. We will release full details of this incident, including video once we have all the facts and can report them accurately. We expect to have more details and video released within one week. Please contact the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s for the identity of the deceased suspect, as that agency is responsible for ensuring proper notifications have been made to next of kin prior to public release of the name.
***Original Release***
On 11/5/2020, at about 7:20 PM, the Oxnard Police Department was in a vehicle pursuit of an armed suspect that entered the city of Ventura. As the pursuit went onto surface streets within the City of Ventura, the Oxnard Police Department requested that the Ventura Police Department assist. The Ventura Police Department took over the pursuit. During the pursuit, the suspect’s vehicle was disabled in the area of Harbor Blvd and Seaward Ave. The suspect driver exited his vehicle at that location and an officer involved shooting occurred with a Ventura PD officer. The suspect was struck by the gunfire and was pronounced deceased at the scene. No officers or bystanders were injured.
The scene is still active and the investigation is underway. This will be the extent of the information released this evening. Further press information will be provided by noon tomorrow.
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