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Arrest attempt prompts suicide
by Jason Dietrich
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Redondo Beach Police Department SWAT team members prepare to enter a house on the 1900 block of Ruhland Ave. Photo by Jason Dietrich |
A suspected child molester apparently committed suicide when Redondo Beach police officers approached his house on the 1900 block of Ruhland Avenue Tuesday afternoon.
Detectives and uniformed patrol officers went to the North Redondo home of a 67-year-old man to serve an arrest warrant around 4 p.m. Seeing the man inside the house, the officers announced that they had a warrant for his arrest.
The man didn’t say anything, but retreated to the rear of the house. Less than a minute later, a single gunshot was heard. When SWAT team members entered the residence they found the suspect dead from a single gunshot wound to the head.
Neighbors described the man they knew as "Bob" as a "nice guy," who was always ready to lend a hand whenever they needed help in the yard or making repairs around the home.
"He must have been very desperate to have done something like that. I still can’t believe it, but who knows what was going on there," said neighbor Francoise Goiset.
Her son, Adam Goiset, said he had seen Bob earlier in the day, but didn’t notice anything unusual. Around 4 p.m. he heard what he described as a small explosion.
"I was pretty sure it was a shotgun, because I’ve heard them go off before. It sounded like it was in Robert’s house. Then I heard glass breaking," Adam Goiset said.
The man’s two dogs were removed by Redondo animal control while Redondo detectives searched the residence Tuesday afternoon. Police were withholding further information on the incident until relatives are notified. ER