Investigative Follow 2Investigative Follow-up
DR# 10-70600
Victim Officers: R. Garcia #6178, and D. Reyes #6268
Defendant: Miguel Angel Vargas BN# 2516596 (arrested for no bail warrant only)
Clothing inspection
On 10/28/10 at approximately 0900 am Detective McGuire traveled to the Long Beach
Police Department evidence control building and retrieved Defendant Vargas’ clothes
he was wearing during the shooting.
Detective McGuire retrieved the clothing to inspect and photograph the shirt, t-shirt and
pants to see if there was a powder burn on the clothing from a self-inflicted gunshot.
Detective McGuire inspected the clothes and there was no signs of any powder burn to
any of the articles of clothing on the front, however there was a small hole, possibly a
bullet hole on the front left side of the shirt and corresponding area of the t-shirt.
Detective McGuire had Forensic Specialist C. Moncure photograph the shirt and t-shirt
to memorialize the condition of the articles of clothing. The pants were not
photographed at this time.
Crime Scene canvass
On 10/28/10 at 1030 am Detective M. McGuire and G. Krabbe and several assisting
homicide detectives returned to the crime scene area to search for any additional
impact marks and evidence.
Detectives searched the north/south alley south of Hellman Avenue where the shooting
occurred, as well as Hellman Avenue west of that alley, southbound down the alley,
both sides of Hellman Avenue, searching for impact marks left by the defendants gun
when he fired his two shots at Officer Reyes and Officer Garcia.
Detectives were investigating if the defendant had an accidental discharge and shot
himself and where the defendant’s shots impacted or direction of travel they may have
been fired in since the ballistic evidence confirmed that the defendant fired two rounds
from his handgun.
Defendant’s Gun
On 10/28/10 detective McGuire contacted Firearms Criminalist T. Ward to see if the gun
the defendant was armed with had a safety.
Criminalist Ward told McGuire the handgun he photographed, recovered, and tested,
has two safeties on it. There is a safety on the left side of the frame just below the slide
and an additional safety on the grip, which you have to depress in order for this weapon
to fire.
The defendant threw the gun approximately 15’-20’ feet west of where he went down
and the gun did not fire. Detectives also checked the area where the gun landed after it
was thrown to see if there were any impacts in that area and none were found.
Our investigation reveals that the defendant fired his handgun two times in an unknown
direction but possibly towards the pursuing officers. Detectives believe the defendant
did not shoot himself based on the lack of gunpowder evidence on the inside of his
clothes, which is common when a person shoots himself while pulling a handgun and
accidentally firing it before clearing if from his waistband or firing into himself leaving a
powder burn on the clothing.
During the crime scene investigation a 9mm shell casing was found on the ground
underneath the defendant after he was rolled over by arresting officers. An additional
9mm casing was found in the grass area of the south curb of Hellman Avenue just west
of the mouth of the north/south alley where the defendant was shot and taken into
custody.