MORGAN HILL, Calif. — A Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputy was charged with staging a shocking ambush in which he said he was shot from a passing car as he stood on a dark rural road near Morgan Hill.
The following statement was provided by Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen:
Responding police found no serious injuries on Deputy Sukhdeep Gill. It appeared he had been shot only once, and in a miraculous spot – his body-worn camera, which was destroyed. The incident triggered a manhunt for the shooter.
However, the 27-year-old deputy’s story fell apart during an intensive investigation.
Now Gill – who has been with the Sheriffs’ Office since 2016 – is charged with felony vandalism and falsely reporting a crime, a misdemeanor. He faces incarceration if convicted. Gill was arrested today after a warrant was issued.
“This case is bewildering and deeply disappointing,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. “Deputy Gill’s actions abused the trust of his fellow officers and diverted public safety resources away from protecting the community to investigate a made-up crime.”
At approximately 10:32 p.m., on January 31, 2020, the deputy hit the emergency broadcast button on his department issued radio and broadcast “Shots fired! Shots fired!” Officers responded from the Sheriff’s Office as well as the San Jose, Morgan Hill, and Gilroy police departments.
The deputy told the first officer on scene that he had parked on the dirt shoulder to urinate during a routine patrol. While walking back towards the driver side of his patrol car he was shot at by the passenger in a silver sedan that had turned off its lights as it approached him. The deputy said he fired two shots towards the suspect vehicle, which fled on Uvas Road.
An investigation found evidence, including ballistics, that exposed serious discrepancies in the deputy’s account, police said.
