A father kidnapped his 15-year-old daughter after allegedly murdering her mother.
The Associated Press reported that the fugitive, Anthony John Graziano, had allegedly murdered his wife the previous day and then kidnapped his daughter, Savannah Graziano, and was on the run.
The police issued an Amber Alert after the murder and abduction. The alert described Graziano as armed and dangerous.
Anthony Graziano, 45, allegedly shot and killed his estranged wife, Tracy Martinez, 45, on Monday in what the police believe was a domestic violence incident. According to Chris Surgent, a Fontana Police Sergeant, the fatal incident happened in the City of Fontana.
The Fontana Police Department issued a statement saying they were called to the scene at around 7:30 am Monday. They found a female with multiple gunshot wounds at her home.
A caller to 911 reported seeing a Nissan Frontier in Barstow, California. Police quickly located the vehicle, and they began a pursuit for about 45 miles. Not long after the chase started, Graziani started firing multiple shots at the police car from his vehicle’s rear window.
Shannon Dicus, the San Bernardino County Sheriff, said Graziano’s daughter might have also been shooting back at the deputies.
The shooter(s) fired several rounds, and some of the bullets went through a patrol car’s windshield and incapacitated the vehicle.
Graziano’s car broke down in Hesperia, about 34 miles from Fontana, and the fatal gunfight with deputies followed.
According to Sheriff Dicus, Savannah was in tactical gear as she got out of the Nissan’s passenger side. She started running toward the deputies, and fell in the middle of the firefight. Because she was wearing a helmet and what looked like a military vest that could hold armored plates, the sheriff’s deputies did not at first realize that it was a 15-year-old female running toward them.
Savannah was transported to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Deputies found Graziano in the driver’s seat, also in tactical gear, and pronounced him dead at the scene. They also found a rifle in his car.
Sheriff Dicus said that one of the officers in the shootout was injured by shrapnel.
The officers investigating the murder of Tracy Martinez spoke to several family members who informed them that Graziano and Martinez had been going through a bitter divorce. Sadly, the death of all three brings a bitter end to an entire family.
