Rival campers who opened fire on each other at campground turns out that the rival gun-toting campers were both Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies
An apparent booze-fueled dispute over loud music between two groups at a Chino campground over the weekend escalated to the point where men from both sides drew guns and opened fire.
No one was hurt, but the two alleged gunmen have plenty to explain. Feuding L.A. County deputies, both off duty camping at Prado Regional Park, apparently didn't know they were colleagues.
No one was hurt, but the two alleged gunmen have plenty to explain.
Feuding L.A. County deputies, both off duty camping at Prado Regional Park, apparently didn't know they were colleagues.
Authorities suspect the off-duty cops learned they were colleagues only after their campground showdown.
Chino police officers were called to Prado Regional Park early Sunday morning. They arrested the deputies — Dejay Barber, 44, and Matthew Rincon, 24 — on suspicion of negligent discharge of a firearm.
Chino police Lt. Wes Simmons, when asked if he'd ever come across a similar scene, couldn't stifle a chuckle: "That's not fair for you to ask me that," he said, before acknowledging that he hadn't.
Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said both deputies have been relieved of duty with pay. He said the men brandished their guns in a "threatening manner."
They did not fire at each other, he said, but into the air.
"Alcohol is suspected," Whitmore said. "This is gross negligence."
It's unclear if there were other campers nearby when the off-duty deputies began shooting. Multiple rounds were fired.
"I don't know how many, but more than one," Whitmore said.
Whitmore said the department is taking the latest incident seriously.
One of the deputies works in the county courts, Whitmore said, and the other in the department's transit services division. The criminal investigation will be handled by the Chino police.
Both were arrested and transported to the Chino Police Department and released to the L.A. County Sheriff's Department.
Both were arrested and transported to the Chino Police Department and released to the L.A. County Sheriff's Department.
No press release was issued about the campground gunfire. The Times learned of the incident through a source.
If you have any information about this incident, you're urged to contact the Chino Police Department at (909) 628-1234.
Prado Regional Park is a recreational park facility located in the Chino Valley basin where San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange and Los Angeles Counties connect. The name Prado is derived from California’s early Spanish days when the countryside was known as a “prado” or meadow.
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