Updated 10:30 a.m. October 18
Two people were shot this morning, including a man wanted for a double homicide, in an early morning shooting spree that ranged from Yucca Valley to Morongo Valley. The Sheriff’s Department says that about 2:14 a.m., deputies responded to the 7400 block of Elk Trail in Yucca Valley for a report of a shooting. The caller said Roger Tindell, 36, of Morongo Valley, had shot a 43-year-old man in the head and then left the home in a silver BMW with a 24-year-old woman. Deputies quickly located Tindell driving the BMW and began a pursuit to Morongo Valley. Tindell recorded a portion of the pursuit and posted it to Facebook. In the recording, he introduced the woman with him, told her he was not going to kill her but was just using her as a hostage so the deputies wouldn’t shoot at the car, called her “babe” and said he loved her. A deputy can also be heard telling Tindell to get out of the car, to which he responds by telling the deputy to “back off” or he’d shoot the woman inside the car. Tindell appears to stop the car, tells the woman to cover her ears, and then six gunshots are heard–four shots, and then two shots–but it’s not clear if Tindell fired all six shots. Deputies said they returned fire after Tindell shot at them, and firefighters said Tindell had been shot five times. The pursuit ended when Tindell crashed into a Sheriff’s patrol car and a fire hydrant at San Jacinto Street and Mojave Drive in Morongo Valley. Homicide detectives learned that Roger Tindell is wanted by the FBI as a suspect in a double homicide in Henderson, Nevada. The 43-year-old victim was taken by ambulance to Hi-Desert Medical Center with serious injuries, and then to Desert Hospital in Palm Springs. His prognosis is unknown. Tindell suffered serious injuries and was also taken to Desert Hospital. He is expected to survive. The 24-year-old woman, whom Tindell said was pregnant, did not appear to be injured but she was taken to a local hospital as a precaution. Anyone with information about Tindell or the shooting is urged to contact Detective Nick Clark at 909-387-3589.
Roger Tindell was arrested for investigation of attempted murder, and booked into the West Valley Detention Center at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, October 17, with his bail set at $1 million. He is also being held on a no-bail bond for being a fugitive from Nevada.
