Quick, Where’s this Combat Operation?

Weaponsman

Now taking place somewhere in the world: a couple squads of infantry in ninja suits, an armored truck with a gun turret.

But where?  

Yep, it’s actually in California, where police fanned out to search an area after a woman was murdered in a home invasion.

According to sheriff’s radio broadcasts, the deputy encountered a man wearing body armor and armed with an AR-15 rifle.

There were initial reports of three to five armed assailants, but witnesses may have over-estimated and lumped a landscaping crew in with the shooter and his cohorts, sheriff’s officials said.

Hmmm. Is that the reporter’s subtle attempt to slip the description of the armed criminal into the news report? You know you’re not supposed to do that. Naughty, naughty reporter.

Authorities confirmed that shots were fired outside a house at 8555 Pigeon Pass. A gardener at the location apparently leapt into a ravine for cover and broke his leg.
A Riverside police armored personnel carrier was brought to the scene to transport a rescue team to retrieve the 24-year-old victim, who was pulled to safety and loaded into an ambulance around 4:15 p.m.

A SWAT unit remained positioned outside the residence on Pigeon Pass Road, cautiously attempting to determine whether any suspects were still on the premises.

Dozens of Riverside police officers were also at the scene, assisting with road closures and the investigation.

via BREAKING: Woman Killed, Deputy Shot, Landscaper Injured, Armed Assailants at Large With AR-15 | DailySoCal.com.

Another story on the same site says the bad guy’s gun was an AK, so the media are doing what they usually do: writing the story, then seeking facts.

This may be a rare case where the militarization of the police is actually called for. On the other hand, waiting for the APC certainly ate up the victim’s Golden Hour. It was a tough call either way. (We suspect the victim was doorknob dead anyway, and the on-scene commander might have known that).

Certainly more information would be welcome, but if there isn’t a Tea Party guy wearing a t-shirt with some hatey Constitutional quote at the root of it, they’ve probably done all the reporting they’re going to do.

UPDATE:

As more information comes in, the dead woman is identified as Wilma Patterson, a second, unidentified dead person has been found, the deputy’s non-life-threatening injury is described as a bullet wound, and the suspects are described as follows:

According to sheriff’s radio broadcasts, the deputy encountered a man wearing body armor and armed with an AR-15 assault rifle.

There were initial reports of three to five assailants carrying rifles, but witnesses may have over-estimated and lumped a landscaping crew in with the shooter and his cohorts, sheriff’s officials said.

According to reports from the scene, three spent .223 shell casings were discovered, along with a towel that witnesses indicated one of the suspects used to conceal his identity.

A deputy identified freshly broken branches on several pepper trees at the edge of the property, where the gunmen apparently made their escape on foot.

They were described only as black males, one of whom was wearing military-style clothing, according to reports from the scene.

Unless one of them who was not in “military style clothing” was wearing a Gadsden Flag t-shirt, we’ve probably heard the last of this crime… but they did describe the assailants, sort of. (How you pick these guys out from the millions and millions of “black males” who are not criminals is apparently left as an exercise for the reader. Wait for them to open fire, maybe).

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