A Morongo Basin Sheriff’s Sergeant was shot and killed Monday afternoon after a brief gun battle following a pursuit in Yucca Valley, the suspect was also shot and killed. According to sheriff’s reports, Deputies attempted a traffic stop near Paxton Road and Imperial Drive around 12:30 p.m. in Yucca Valley. Deputies initiated a pursuit after the suspect on a motorcycle failed to yield. During the pursuit, the suspect dumped the bike near Dumosa and Sunnyslope and ran South into the desert. He shot at pursuing deputies out of an ambush South of Crestview and Barberry and hit a Sheriff’s Sergeant. The suspect was located by responding deputies soon after, and, after a brief gun battle, was shot and killed. The wounded Sergeant, Dominic Vaca, 43, a 17-year veteran of the Sheriff’s Department, was taken by helicopter to Desert Regional Medical Center where he passed from his wounds.
