Murder Suspect, Daughter Killed in Shootout

Police say Anthony Graziano killed estranged wife, fled with their 15-year-old daughter
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 27, 2022 5:07 PM CDT
Updated Sep 27, 2022 8:42 PM CDT
Kidnapping Suspect Killed in California Shootout
This photo provided by the City of Fontana Police Department shows Anthony John Graziano.   (Courtesy of City of Fontana Police Department via AP)

This story has been updated with news of Savannah Graziano's death. A man suspected of killing his wife and abducting their 15-year-old daughter Monday was killed in a shootout in California Tuesday, authorities say. KTLA reports that Anthony John Graziano, 45, exchanged fire with officers after a pursuit on the 15 Freeway that ended in Hesperia, San Bernardino County. Police confirmed later Tuesday that the daughter, 15-year-old Savannah Graziano, had also been killed. San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus said Graziano, and possibly his daughter, fired at deputies from the vehicle's back window throughout the chase, disabling two of the pursuing vehicles.

Dicus said the girl was wearing tactical gear when she left the vehicle and ran toward deputies, the AP reports. He didn't say whether the girl was shot by deputies or her father. The sheriff said the teen was also wearing a helmet and officer didn't immediately realize it was the girl, not her father, who was running towards them. Savannah Graziano was pronounced dead in a hospital. Her father was found dead in the driver's seat. An Amber Alert was issued after Tracy Martinez, Graziano's estranged wife, was shot dead Monday morning on a street in Fontana, around 30 miles from Hesperia, and Graziano fled with the teen.

Witnesses said the suspect fired 20 shots at the woman from his Nissan Frontier pickup truck, the Mercury News reports. Witnesses said he fired at the woman as she tried to flee in a minivan and then fired several more shots after the minivan crashed into a curb and she got out of the vehicle and ran. The shooting happened near an elementary school where parents were dropping off their children. "He was so brazen. He had no regard for anybody," witness Heberto Echave told the San Bernardino Sun. (More California stories.)

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