Pomona Shooting: Arrest Warrant Issued For LAPD Officer Henry Solis In Nightclub Homicide Investigation

An ongoing homicide investigation led California authorities to issue an arrest warrant Monday for Henry Solis, a rookie Los Angeles Police Department officer who allegedly shot and killed a 23-year-old man outside a nightclub in Pomona, California, early Friday and has since gone missing. Solis was off-duty when the fatal shooting occurred and failed to show up for work Saturday, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Authorities said Solis, 27, should be considered armed and dangerous. “The suspect knows he is wanted and that police are actively searching for him,” a statement from Pomona police stated, adding it's “a felony for any person to harbor, conceal or aid a fugitive in an effort to avoid or escape arrest. If you have any information about the suspect’s whereabouts, please contact police immediately.”

Solis has been a probationary officer with the LAPD’s San Fernando Valley division since December. He had gone to Viva Tequila Lounge and Nightclub in downtown Pomona, about 30 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, Thursday and stayed until early Friday morning. After leaving the club, Solis got into an altercation with the victim, Salome Rodriguez Jr. of Ontario, California. The pair was seen fighting near West Third and South Main streets before Solis shot Rodriguez five times, hitting him in the abdomen, leg and lower neck.

Rodriguez fled to a nearby parking lot, where he collapsed. He was taken to USC Medical Center in Los Angeles, where he was pronounced dead, KTLA-TV, Los Angeles, reported.

A vigil was held Sunday in Rodriguez’ honor. Friends and family gathered at a curbside memorial near where Rodriguez was shot, sharing stories and playing music.

It was unclear what prompted the confrontation between Solis and Rodriguez or whether the men knew each other before that night. Solis’ Volkswagen Jetta was found Sunday in Pomona a few blocks from where the shooting took place.

The LAPD came under fire earlier this month after video footage of police fatally shooting a man on the city’s infamous Skid Row went viral. Authorities said the man had reached for an officer’s handgun before he was shot by three officers. The incident sparked protests although what exactly took place remains unclear, the Associated Press reported. The four officers involved in the shooting were put on paid leave.