Transport Officer Elias Montalvo-Rodriguez

Elias Montalvo-Rodriguez

Transportation Officer Elias Montalvo-Rodriguez and Juvenile Detention Officer Jose Lopez-Reyes were shot and killed during an escape attempt while transporting two juveniles to the Humacao Juvenile Detention Center following a court hearing.

The transport van was traveling on PR-185 near the Campo Rico neighborhood in Canovanas when two vehicles blocked its path. The occupants of the vehicle opened fire on the van, killing both officers. One of the juveniles in the van escaped but the one the suspects were attempting to free did not as a result of several citizens stopping and frustrating the plans.

The juvenile had been arrested the previous day for a bank robbery. Detectives had obtained intelligence that they the boy's cousin and fellow gang members were going to attempt to free him but additional resources were refused during the transport. The juvenile who escaped was recaptured a short time later.

Juvenile detention officers were not issued firearms during the time period this incident occurred.

Officer Montalvo-Rodriguez had served with the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for 20 years and was assigned to the Humacao Juvenile Detention Center.