LAPD Bulldozes House, Finds Cop Shooter Dead Inside

SYLMAR, Calif. -- A man who barricaded himself in his house after shooting a police officer was later found dead when a remote-controlled bulldozer was used to rip apart his residence.

The dramatic end to an 18-hour standoff came Monday night after police had utilized every means possible -- phone calls, a bullhorn, tear gas and gunfire -- to get Sergio O. Salazar to come out of his two-story home in this Los Angeles suburb.

He was found shot to death on the upper floor with a high-powered rifle next to his side, police said. It is unclear whether the wounds were self-inflicted. The police officer he shot is expected to survive.

"We've collectedly scratched our heads a bit because [Salazar's] criminal history is relatively old," LAPD Deputy Chief Kirk Albanese told reporters at the scene. "What prompted this, what caused this man to do the things that he did today? We don't know."

Salazar was found by a robotic device, normally used to locate bombs, that has a long crane with a claw at the end that can pick up items or destroy them. Nicknamed the "Bad Cat," it also is retrofitted with a camera that allows police to see what is happening without placing an officer in harm's way.

Television helicopters showed the Bad Cat moving a car out of the way, then ripping the wall off the second story of the five-bedroom house. Contents tumbled to the ground below, and in one room a mattress was clearly visible. Then the robot started demolishing the bottom part of the house, ripping the garage door off.

"They will tear the house apart piece by piece," Los Angeles City Councilman Dennis Zine, a former LAPD officer, told AOL News earlier in the day. "If they have to dismantle that house, that's what they'll do."

The incident began at 10:30 p.m. Sunday when Salazar's wife called 911 from a neighbor's house to report that she had been beaten by her husband. Paramedics responded and found she had cuts and bruises. Police arrived, and Salazar was apparently walking around the neighborhood looking for his wife.

Police said they were told that Salazar owned several guns, so they doubled their efforts to locate him. Around 2 a.m., K-9 officer Steve Jenkins entered the house with a key that was supplied by Salazar's wife, KTLA-TV reported. He was shot in the jaw and shoulder, but managed to stagger back to a patrol car. The bullet in his shoulder traveled through his chest, fracturing ribs and ripping a hole in his lung.

Jenkins was rushed to a hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

Salazar barricaded himself in his house as dozens of SWAT officers from the LAPD and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department surrounded the house. Neighbors in the immediate vicinity were evacuated, and a shelter was set up at a local school.

Officers tried to communicate with Salazar without success. At one point, he exchanged gunfire from an open window. Tear gas was deployed around 10 a.m., and when that didn't produce results, the robot was brought in.

"If you have somebody shooting at officers, our job is to secure the suspect as best we can. At that point, officers have the right to use whatever tactics necessary to bring the situation to a calm," LAPD spokesman Cleon Joseph told AOL News.

LAPD officials did not want to send in any additional officers and are still reeling from the death of SWAT officer Randal Simmons, who was shot and killed in 2008 while entering a home during a similar type of incident. Simmons' partner was shot in the face.

"They learn from every situation that takes place," Zine said, adding that this incident was the first time the Bad Cat was used to destroy a house.

As the day wore on, Salazar was not seen or heard from, and police began to suspect that he was dead. The camera on the Bad Cat eventually spotted his body in a bedroom, police said.

Salazar had a 1993 misdemeanor conviction for carrying a loaded firearm in a public place, the Los Angeles Times reported. An autopsy will determine whether his wounds were self-inflicted.

Jenkins faces numerous surgeries, his doctor told the media. He is a 22-year veteran of the LAPD and is married to an LAPD sergeant. The couple have a son, who is also an LAPD officer.