Suspects killed, officers wounded in shootout

Two people with outstanding warrants were killed in a shootout that wounded two officers Monday afternoon in Sand City.

The suspects were identified today as 27-year-old William Spaits and 23-year-old Tina Money, both of Seaside, Monterey County District Attorney Dean Flippo said.

Both suspects were well known to law enforcement agencies in the Monterey Peninsula, Flippo said.

Spaits was wanted for an outstanding no-bail warrant for parole violation and other warrants totaling $300,000, according to Flippo.

Money had six outstanding warrants worth $160,000, he said.

Spaits allegedly attempted to burglarize a Pebble Beach home early Monday morning but was caught by a resident and escaped, Flippo said.

Spaits allegedly took a credit card used at a Kohl’s department store in Marina, according to Flippo.

Police issued an alert to be on the lookout for the suspects, who were spotted by security personnel at the Target store located at 2040 California Ave. on Monday afternoon, Flippo said.

Around 2:45 p.m., officers responded to the store where they found Spaits in the store’s parking lot, according to Flippo.

Spaits allegedly ran to a BMW in the parking lot, where Money and a third suspect were inside. Shots were then exchanged between the officers and Spaits and Money, Flippo said.

Spaits and Money were pronounced dead at the scene, he said.

The two Sand City police officers involved in the shooting were hospitalized.

One of the officers was treated for a neck wound and was released Monday night, Flippo said.

The other officer was shot in the upper chest and remained at the hospital, where he was in stable condition as of late this morning, Flippo said.

A third person in the backseat of the BMW was taken into custody but has not been charged as of this afternoon, Flippo said.

The names of the officers and the third suspect have not been released.

“No one else was hit, which was amazing,” Flippo said, adding that there have been no vehicles found with damage from the gunfire.

The Monterey County District Attorney’s Office will be conducting an investigation into the officer-involved shooting, he said.

Fifteen investigators from the district attorney’s office responded to the scene, which was cleared at about 10 p.m. Monday, Flippo said.

The BMW has been towed and will undergo a forensic examination, he said.

Investigators will also be interviewing witnesses and securing surveillance footage from nearby businesses, Flippo said.

Autopsies on Spaits and Money are scheduled for Wednesday, Flippo said.

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