Felony charges are expected be filed Wednesday against a 44-year-old Wildomar man who allegedly shot a rifle into the air and shouted threats at his neighbors, triggering an hours-long standoff with sheriff’s deputies that ended with him surrendering peacefully.
Eric Clifford Rinderhagen was arrested last Thursday night — and held in lieu of $2 million bail at the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta — on suspicion of making terrorist threats, stalking, recklessly discharging a firearm, resisting arrest and being in possession of a firearm while under a restraining order.
According to Riverside County sheriff’s Sgt. Brett Seckinger, the suspect came to the attention of deputies in November after he allegedly ”made threats to kill multiple people” with whom he was acquainted, or who had associated with in the past.
Seckinger said detectives determined that he should be considered a potential public safety threat, based on Rinderhagen’s alleged behavior and the fact that he had a number of guns registered at his residence in the 24000 block of Mauri Court. However, he was not arrested.
About 11 a.m. Thursday, the suspect allegedly walked outside of his home, aimed a rifle in the air and fired several shots, then yelled unspecified threats at his neighbors. Patrol deputies and SWAT members converged on the location, evacuating surrounding homes and closing several streets, including a portion of the busy east-west artery Clinton Keith Road.
In the ensuing standoff, Rinderhagen hunkered down in his house for over nine hours, while crisis management team negotiators tried to talk him out, Seckinger said.
The suspect finally surrendered without SWAT members having to forcibly enter his residence. No one was injured.
According to court records, a woman filed a domestic violence restraining order against Rinderhagen in 2015, but the circumstances were not disclosed.
The suspect has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.