A northwestern Arizona man was convicted of 11 criminal charges, including attempted murder, last month in the 2022 shooting of an Arizona Department of Public Safety officer.
A jury on July 19 convicted Juan Manuel Rodriguez, 49, of Lake Havasu, of attempted first-degree murder, according to the DPS. 3 counts of aggravated assault. Possession of drugs for sale. Possession of dangerous drugs for sale. Illegal flight. money laundering; drive-by shooting; Firing a firearm at a non-residential building. and illegal activities with weapons.
According to DPS information, at least one of the aggravated assault charges was a charge of aggravated assault against law enforcement.
All of the charges Rodriguez was convicted of were felonies.
On April 1, 2022, Mr. Rodriguez, driving a BMW sedan in Kingman, failed to stop at a stop sign and DPS detectives tried to stop him, but Mr. Rodriguez refused and the chase continued. the station announced. During the chase, Rodriguez tried to ram the detective’s patrol car, but then lost control and the detective crashed into a BMW, DPS detailed.
“I had to get off my shoulder to let him go,” the detective can be heard arguing. body camera video.
DPS said detectives pulled out a gun to stop Rodriguez, but Rodriguez disobeyed orders and began reaching under the dashboard.
Detectives caught on body camera repeatedly ordered the driver to raise his hand before hearing what sounded like a machine gun shot, and the officer responded with multiple shots from inside the patrol car.
The BMW backed up, detectives returned to the car, and Rodriguez opened fire with an automatic gun, according to the DPS. Detectives opened fire and attempted to flee the area, the DPS added.
DPS said the BMW rammed a police car as Rodriguez fled, then got behind detectives and began firing at the cruiser. DPS said detectives fired back through his rear window and a bullet from a chasing BMW hit him in the back.
As the chase continued, body cameras showed the officer screaming in apparent pain before telling police he had been beaten.
The detective managed to escape and receive treatment after being taken to a hospital, treated and released by a Mojave County sheriff’s deputy, according to the DPS.
DPS said a DPS helicopter found Rodriguez, whose BMW was out of order, before he was seen putting the bag in the washing machine. Rodriguez was injured and was arrested at Mojave County Community College where he collapsed while walking, was subsequently hospitalized and then imprisoned, the DPS detailed.
The DPS said they found $34,504 in cash, more than 11 grams of fentanyl and more than 10 grams of methamphetamine in Rodriguez’s bag in the laundry room. The DPS added that five firearms, including a fully automatic pistol and Uzi, were also recovered, along with multiple drug ledgers and additional cash.
The injured detective made a full recovery and returned to duty.
According to court records, Rodriguez had been charged with selling dangerous drugs in 2021 when an incident with DPS detectives occurred in April 2022.
DPS spokesman Bart Graves said Rodriguez’s sentencing will take place in the Mojave County Superior Court on an unspecified date.
