On a chilly Thursday night in March at 9:05PM workers and customers at the La Villa on Planz Road were treated to dinner and a show after an armed robbery turned into an officer involved shooting. A BPD officer patrolling the area saw the robbery in progress and responded. The shooting occurred at the front of the business and involved 2 suspects. Though the suspects were wounded they managed to leave the scene.
It was less than 30 minutes later, at 9:30, when 2 people matching the suspects’ description stumbled into a local hospital suffering from gunshot wounds. Their injuries were not considered life-threatening.
The very next day BPD officers arrested 20-year-old Christopher Salazar, having identified him as one of the 2 suspects. He was charged with three counts of robbery, gang participation, conspiracy, possession of a stolen vehicle, resisting arrest and several firearms violations and booked into jail. Salazar was held on a $230,000 bond.
The second suspect is a 17-year-old male. Once he was released from the hospital the minor was charged with the same charges as Salazar. Due to the suspect’s age his name has been withheld.
The officer that discharged his weapon was put on administrative leave pending the conclusion of an investigation by the Critical Incident Review Board
