Shooting suspect, who injured two kids in a Waymo on Sunday, finally apprehended two days later—after shooting police officer

An officer from the Santa Monica Police Department approaches a walkway near the area of Washington Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. The officers were in pursuit of an active shooter who shot an officer near the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Police vehicles from various police departments, including Torrance, El Segundo, and Hawthorne, drive down Idaho Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. The officers had been deployed in pursuit of an active shooter who shot an officer near the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

A police vehicle blocks off a section of the Third Street Promenade, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. The area was put on high alert after a gunman shot an officer, striking them in the hand before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Officers canvassed the area of Washington Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. Officers were in pursuit of an active shooter who shot an officer earlier in the day at the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Officers from a joint task force stand guard in an alleyway near Washington Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. Officers were in pursuit of an active shooter who shot an officer earlier in the day at the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Officers from a joint task force canvas the area of Washington Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. The officers were in pursuit of an active shooter who shot an officer near the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Officers from a joint task force canvas the area of Washington Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. The officers were in pursuit of an active shooter who shot an officer near the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Police officers ride on the outside of an armored rescue vehicle on Idaho Avenue between Fifth and Sixth Street, Wednesday, June 25, 2025, in Santa Monica, Calif. Officers were pursuing an active shooter who shot an officer near the Third Street Promenade before fleeing the scene on foot. (Nathan Hanson | The Corsair)

Two days after a gunman shot through the window of a Waymo and injured two children, Santa Monica police happened to come across the suspect while on patrol downtown on Wednesday. The suspect shot a police officer, who is in stable condition and scheduled to be discharged from the hospital Wednesday evening.

The Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) found and apprehended the alleged shooter three hours after the shooting of the officer. 

A preliminary statement released by SMPD shortly after the Waymo shooting stated the case was an “open and active investigation.” However, it is not known whether there was still an active investigation into that shooting when an officer happened to encounter the suspect on Wednesday.

On Sunday, June 22, at approximately 11:38 p.m., a gunman fired multiple rounds into a Waymo at the intersection of Second Street and Broadway. This intersection is less than 300 feet from the Santa Monica Place mall.

Two juvenile victims inside the self-driving car sustained injuries, one in the arm and the other in the torso. Both injuries were categorized as non-life-threatening.

The police’s preliminary report stated the shooting was a “targeted and isolated incident” following a verbal altercation between the victims, both children, and the suspect, approximately 30 years old, earlier in the evening. 

When asked if there was a pursuit of the suspect following the shooting on Sunday night, Lieutenant Lewis Gilmour of SMPD said the suspect “had fled as we were arriving.”

“He was already gone,” said Gilmour.

The police opened an investigation into the attack and procured a photo of the suspect as well as descriptive details. Gilmour is not aware where the photo originated from.

At around 1 p.m. on Wednesday, June 25, an SMPD officer patrolling downtown Santa Monica identified the alleged gunman near Santa Monica Place and the Third Street Promenade. The department confirmed with the Corsair that they happened to run into him and were not in the process of tracking him down.

The officer tried to detain the suspect, who attempted to flee on foot and fired multiple rounds while he was moving, reportedly with a handgun. The officer was hit and injured, sustaining what the department described as “serious but non-life-threatening injuries.”

“This marks the second time in eight months that a Santa Monica officer has been seriously injured in the line of duty—first by stabbing, now by gunfire,” a SMPD statement reads.

According to SMPD Chief Ramon Batista, the injured officer was a younger, newer addition to the force. 

“He is enthusiastic, he is in field training,” Batista said at a news conference. “He’s got a great attitude.”

Batista visited the officer, whose name has not been publicly released, in the hospital following his injury.

“He is in great spirits and I feel hopeful that he will recover,” Batista said.

Batista also said he doesn’t know the motive behind the Waymo shooting.

Gilmour confirmed the photo circulating of the suspect in the Wednesday shooting was initially the photo documented as the suspect in the Waymo shooting.

“We are almost 100% accurate in believing that it’s the same individual,” said Batista. The chief also said there was an “indication” that the man was homeless, but he’s “not 100%.”

The man reportedly took off into the mall, which police then surrounded; by 2:15 p.m., he had fled the area and was heading north. 

Throughout the afternoon, the city was on high alert, as SMPD issued a shelter-in-place order for the downtown area. 

Santa Monica College (SMC) police reshared a bulletin from the city about the ongoing incidents and corresponding road closures.

The bulletin states that Santa Monica Place was “cleared” and the shelter-in-place orders lifted by 3 p.m., before the suspect was apprehended.

At around 4:20 p.m., a tip from a resident led SMPD to apprehend the suspect near Palisades Park. According to Batista, no force was used in the final apprehension of the suspect, and the handgun believed to be used in both attacks was seized by the department. 

Batista specifically thanked the residents of Santa Monica for their contributions to the pursuit at the news conference: “They were ultimately our best partners in determining where he was and the contact that we made with him.”

He also shared he wasn’t aware of any criminal charges incoming for the suspect.

As of Monday, both victims of the Waymo shooting were in stable condition at a local hospital, per the preliminary police statement. Their current conditions are not known.

This is a developing story. Further investigation into the incidents are pending.