A wanted man who was fatally shot during a confrontation with Beaumont police officers and Riverside County sheriff’s deputies was identified Wednesday as a 44-year-old Glendora resident.
Dennis McHugh was killed on New Year’s Eve in the 400 block of East Fourth Street, near Beaumont Avenue, according to Riverside County coroner’s officials.
At about 10 p.m. on Dec. 30, the suspect was involved in a domestic dispute in the 17000 block of Ridge Canyon Drive in Woodcrest, where patrol deputies were summoned to investigate, according to the Beaumont Police Department.
Investigators said deputies confirmed McHugh’s identity with the victim, and a check of records indicated that he had an outstanding felony warrant for assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping and other offenses.
McHugh fled the area before deputies arrived, culminating in a search utilizing a sheriff’s helicopter, whose crew spotted his vehicle parked on Fourth Street in Beaumont at about 1 a.m., at which point local police units and deputies converged on the location, according to a police statement.
“The suspect attempted to flee the area by ramming a vehicle occupied by a civilian and multiple police cars,” the statement said. “An officer- and deputy-involved shooting occurred at that time. While the ramming occurred, an officer became trapped under a vehicle and couldn’t escape.”
Not knowing whether McHugh had been fatally wounded, on-scene commanders took heightened precautions in extricating the trapped lawman, using a sheriff’s armored vehicle to safely remove him from the location, police said.
He was not injured, nor was the civilian or any of the other officers or deputies.
After receiving no response from McHugh in the ensuing hour, sheriff’s SWAT personnel circled his vehicle and discovered him dead, according to officials.
Further background information on the suspect was not available.