Salem Police Arrest Suspect In Robbery and Shooting of Cab Driver

The location of the traffic stop was at Pine St NE and Laurel St NE, just blocks from the location of the May 24th incident.

19-year old Bernardino Garcia Photo: Salem Police

(SALEM, Ore.) - Salem Police have arrested a suspect in the robbery and shooting of a cab driver on the morning of May 24th. Police spokesman Lt. Dave Okada says 19-year old Bernardino Garcia, was arrested during a traffic stop at approximately 9:00 pm last night.

Okada says that on May 24th at approximately 4:22 AM, Salem Police were called to a report of a person with a gunshot wound in the 2200 block of Liberty St NE.

"Upon arrival, officers found that a cab driver had picked up a fare in the Jan Ree area of northeast Salem and had driven him to the 2200 block of Liberty St NE, when the suspect attempted to rob the driver of some money."

He says that during the altercation, the cab driver sustained a reported gunshot to the head and the suspect fled on foot.

"Since the incident, Salem Police detectives have been actively following up on investigative leads and have developed probable cause to arrest suspect Bernardino Garcia," Okada said.

On the evening of June 6th, Okada says Officer Brian Shaw stopped a vehicle that was suspected to have been involved in a hit and run accident. Garcia was a passenger in the vehicle and gave false information to the officer and was also in possession of a loaded handgun and a small amount of methamphetamine.

"The location of the traffic stop was at Pine St NE and Laurel St NE, just blocks from the location of the May 24th incident."

Okada says that as a result, he was arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance, Possession of a Concealed Weapon and Giving False Information to a Police Officer. He was further charged with Attempted Aggravated Murder and Robbery in the First Degree based on the incident on May 24. Further charges based on that incident are pending.