CLEARLAKE PARK, Calif. – On Wednesday evening authorities remained at the scene of a Clearlake Park residence where one of several suspects allegedly involved in a Clearlake Oaks home invasion robbery was said to be hiding.
Following the morning robbery, the suspects also allegedly were involved in a pursuit with Clearlake Police, shooting at officers before fleeing on foot and ending up in a 15th Street residence.
Sgt. Nick Bennett of the Clearlake Police Department said a SWAT team was standing by, waiting for police to get a search warrant to enter the home.
He said four suspects were in custody – three males and one female – with an additional male subject believed to still be in the home hiding.
Once the search warrant is in hand, the SWAT team will go in, Bennett said.
Shortly before 9 a.m. four male suspects were reported to have kicked down the door of a Clearlake Oaks home, according to law enforcement and reports from the scene.
The suspects allegedly shot a young man in the leg and pistol whipped him before taking two handguns and a Cadillac Escalade and fleeing the scene, the homeowners told Lake County News.
One of the suspects was said to be a former employee of the homeowners, who are local business owners. The man was fired last summer.
The shooting victim later was flown out of county for medical treatment, but his family said he was doing well and expected to return home soon.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office and the California Highway Patrol responded to the home and law enforcement around the county were put on alert, according to reports from the scene.
Bennett said Police Chief Craig Clausen and Lt. Tim Celli heard the call about the home invasion and were on the lookout for the suspects when they came across a second vehicle said to have been involved in the home invasion in Clearlake Park.
Celli and Clausen pursued and stopped the vehicle at the dead-end on 16th Street, at which point the suspects allegedly shot three or four rounds at them, according to District Attorney Don Anderson.
Celli and Clausen did not discharge any rounds in return, said Anderson, whose department is conducting a critical incident protocol investigation into the incident at Clearlake Police's request.
The suspects fled the area, later ending up at the nearby residence, according to reports from the scene.
Earlier in the day, police sent a reverse 911 to area residents, who reported they were told to stay in their homes.
The ivory-colored 2002 Escalade has not yet been recovered, Bennett said.
Additional information will be posted as it becomes available.
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