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Thursday, September 21-September 27, 2023
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Local. Relevant. Trusted.
VOL. 11,
NO. 139
Authorities arrest alleged killer of sheriff's deputy in Palmdale
Ex-Compton councilman, associate arrested in alleged bribery scheme
By City News Service
By City News Service
fter an hours-long standoff, a 29-yearold man was arrested Monday for allegedly killing a third-generation sheriff's deputy who was gunned down near the department's Palmdale station over the weekend. Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer, 30, was shot around 6 p.m Saturday while sitting in his patrol car near the station at Sierra Highway and East Avenue Q. Sheriff's officials said a good Samaritan stopped to render aid after the shooting and the wounded deputy was taken to Antelope Valley Medical Center in grave condition. He was pronounced dead that night. Early Monday morning, sheriff's deputies arrested 29-year-old Kevin Cataneo Salazar at his family's home following a lengthy standoff. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said Special Enforcement Bureau deputies took him into custody following a barricade that ended after the SEB personnel used "chemical agents" at the scene. Luna said "numerous firearms" were recovered following the arrest, and deputies seized a darkcolored Toyota Camry that was believed to be linked to the killing. "Thirty-six hours after the murder of our deputy, the men and women of our department arrested him early this morning," Luna said during a news conference late Monday morning. Luna said tips from the public led investigators to
the suspect, and he hailed the professionalism shown by deputies involved in the barricade situation and arrest of a person despite knowing the many may have killed one of their own. "Those special enforcement deputies took the time to try to deescalate this and take this individual peacefully into custody, when they knew our deputy was not afforded the same opportunity," Luna said. "He never gave our deputy a chance, but yet our men and women gave this individual a chance to take him into custody peacefully. That's the difference between professionals and individuals out there who are targeting not only community members but more importantly law enforcement out on the street." Luna said a motive for the killing remains a mystery. "We don't know yet, but we intend to find out," Luna said, adding that Clinkunbroomer was "murdered, ambushed by a coward." Luna read a statement from Clinkunbroomer's family. "Our son Ryan was a dedicated hard-working deputy sheriff who enjoyed working here at the Palmdale station," according to the family. "He was proud to work along the side of his partners that he considered brothers and sisters as he sacrificed daily to better the community that he served. Ryan made the ultimate sacrifice in doing so. Ryan was recently engaged to
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give us any piece of information that they believe that they have. Why? Because the arrest is only one part of this. We have to get this individual prosecuted now to the full extent of the law, and we need the public's continued help and support in doing that." County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said she "will not rest" until the deputy's killer is fully prosecuted. "We need to send a clear message that this type of cowardly attack is not going to be tolerated, not here in the Antelope Valley, nowhere in LA County, quite frankly, nowhere in California, it shouldn't be anywhere in this nation. "This was an attack on the law enforcement community. An attack on public safety. An attack on See Killer Page 27
See Bribery scheme Page 28
| Photo courtesy of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department
the love of his life. As our first-born son, Ryan will be greatly missed by his family, friends and the sheriff's department as a whole. Please keep Ryan's family, friends and colleagues in your prayers and respect everyone's privacy during our time of mourning." Luna again urged residents who may have information related to the shooting to come forward. "I want to stress that our investigators are still actively working this case," he said. "There's more information that we probably don't know at this time. Every piece of evidence, everything we have, will be analyzed and I do want to stress to our community that although we are extremely confident that we have the right (person) in custody, I am still asking people to come forward and
the FBI's Los Angeles Field Office, said the FBI arrested Galvan "for allegedly using his position of power to bribe an elected city official in order to enrich himself and a client." "As these actions erode the public's trust and harm the communities these officials were elected to serve, FBI Los Angeles will continue to investigate them and those individuals who enable their corrupt schemes," Always said in a statement. In June 2017, Baldwin Park began permitting the cultivation, manufacture, and distribution of marijuana within its city limits. Soon afterward, then-Baldwin Park City Councilman Ricardo Pacheco, 60, of Baldwin Park, began soliciting bribes from businesses seeking marijuana development agreements and related permits in the city, according to court documents. In exchange for the illicit payments, Pacheco agreed to use his position in city government to assist the companies with obtaining marijuana permits, including voting in their favor, federal prosecutors said. According to the indictment, Galvan first paid Pacheco a $10,000 bribe in August 2017 to secure Pacheco's support for a future consulting client's marijuana permit. Then, after securing Bai's company W&F as a client, Galvan facilitated $70,000 in
former Compton city councilman was arrested Monday on federal charges alleging he and a business associate paid $70,000 in bribes to a member of the Baldwin Park City Council in exchange for that official's votes and support for commercial marijuana permits. Isaac Jacob Galvan, 36, of Compton, who served on the Compton City Council from 2013 until May 2022, was arrested at his home on a 10-count indictment unsealed Monday, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Special agents with the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation on Monday also arrested Yichang Bai, 50, of Arcadia, the owner and operator of W&F International Corp., a Diamond Bar-based import-export business and a consulting client of Galvan's who allegedly helped orchestrate the scheme. The criminal indictment charges Galvan and Bai with one count of conspiracy, one count of bribery and eight counts of honest services wire fraud. The defendants are expected to be arraigned Monday afternoon in Los Angeles federal court. Both defendants entered not guilty pleas during arraignment hearings in Los Angeles federal court and were granted release on unsecured bonds. A tentative trial date of Nov. 14 was set. Donald Always, assistant director in charge of