Guadalupe police officer who shot, killed bystander identified by DOJ

The name of the Guadalupe police officer responsible for shooting a bystander last weekend has been released by state investigators.

Officer Miguel Jaimes is the involved officer in an Aug. 21 shooting that killed a bystander, according to the California Department of Justice.

The DOJ initially spelled the officer’s last name as James on Thursday, but it later corrected the identification when notified by Noozhawk.

Jaimes was sworn in as a Guadalupe police officer in January 2020, according to Guadalupe City Council records.

The state DOJ is spearheading the investigation into the shooting under Assembly Bill 1506.

Details about the shooting remain limited.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has said the incident began when Guadalupe police officers recognized a wanted subject at the intersection of Birch and Obispo streets. That person was wanted on an outstanding no-bail felony arrest warrant, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The Guadalupe police officer, now identified as Jaimes, fired his service weapon at the wanted person, “but instead struck an uninvolved resident who was sitting in a vehicle in the 100 block of Obispo Street,” according to the Sheriff’s Office.

That resident — Juan Luis Olvera-Preciado, 59, of Guadalupe — was pronounced dead at the scene of the shooting.

The wanted person was taken into custody, and no other injuries were reported.

Authorities have not indicated why the officer drew and fired his weapon.

Names of other officers at the scene had not been released as of Thursday.

Law enforcement records confirm that David Cruz, 29, of Guadalupe was the person with a no-bail arrest warrant who was taken into custody by police on Saturday night. He had been sought for a bench warrant after missing a hearing in late July in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.

Cruz and a co-defendant have been charged with three felony counts of conspiracy to commit a crime through forgery of a check.

The checks reportedly were stolen from at least two separate vehicles, according to court documents.

Cruz also has an active misdemeanor case involving identity theft, possession of methamphetamine and possession of a controlled substance identified as alprazolam (generic for Xanax).

Santa Barbara County Jail arrest records show that Guadalupe police arrested Cruz at Obispo and Cedar streets on a no-bail warrant on Saturday night.

Initially held on no bail, Cruz’s bail since has been set at $35,000, and he remained in the custody of the Santa Barbara County Jail on Thursday afternoon.

GoFundMe page created for family of slain bystander

A GoFundMe page has been created for the family of the bystander fatally wounded by Guadalupe police in the shooting.

The shooting victim’s family created the GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral services, and the donation fund had more than $4,100 toward the $10,000 goal as of Thursday.

Family members who started the fundraiser said, “With heavy heart and in disbelief and severely hurting (we) are trying to put Juan Luis Olvera Preciado to rest. We are honoring his wishes for the funeral he would like. We ask for you help in honoring his wishes.”