A California police officer was shot and killed over the weekend by a fellow officer.
After it was alleged that Santa Maria Officer Albert Covarrubias Jr. was engaging in a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl, an investigation began.
On Saturday, while Covarrubias was on duty at a DUI checkpoint, fellow officers attempted to arrest him.
Among those attempting to bring him in was Covarrubias’ friend and best man at his recent wedding, Officer Matt Kline. Covarrubias reportedly resisted them and drew and firing his weapon – though not at anyone – before pointing the gun at his Kline. After a struggle to get the gun away, a third officer fatally shot Covarrubias in the chest. He was pronounced dead after emergency surgery at Marian Medical Center.
Now, the 29-year-old officer’s family is struggling with what happened, asking why they felt it necessary to arrest Covarrubias while he was on duty and armed.
The Associated Press is reporting that at a news conference earlier this week, police Chief Danny Macagni said that Covarrubias had recently become aware that he was being investigated for having the inappropriate relationship with the unnamed teenager.
As for why Covarrubias was arrested while armed, Macagni said that since Covarrubias was now aware that he was under investigation, the department “had no choice” but to “take this officer off the street immediately.”
