Ex-Yakima cop shot ex-wife in front of son at W. Richland school. He was last seen in OR
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A nationwide warrant was issued for the arrest of a former Yakima police officer accused of killing his ex-wife outside a West Richland elementary school on Monday afternoon.
First-degree murder charges were filed late Monday night against Elias Huizar, 39.
He’s accused of killing Amber M. Rodriguez, a 31-year-old real estate agent and a paraeducator at William Wiley Elementary School, near the bus pickup area.
He shot her several times in front of their 9-year-old son, according to court documents filed in Benton County Superior Court.
Richland School District confirmed that Huizar is also a former district employee, having worked as a substitute teacher and volunteer wrestling coach.
As police investigated the shooting at the school, they discovered his girlfriend dead at their nearby home and their 1-year-old son missing. Investigators have not identified her but Angelica M. Santos, 17, was listed as his girlfriend in a recent criminal case, which said they had a baby together.
So far, the nationwide manhunt has led to at least one reported sighting of Huizar.
West Richland police said he was seen in a Portland-area convenience store and possibly farther south later Tuesday morning. Officials have said he may be fleeing to Mexico.
According to a KOIN 6 news report, he was allegedly spotted at a Plaid Pantry gas station on Hayden Island, which is in the Columbia River between Washington and Oregon.
He was driving a black sedan. An Amber Alert issued Monday for Huizar and the 1-year-old boy, Roman, said he may be driving a silver Toyota. Court documents show the Toyota was his brother’s car.
West Richland police have not said where Rodriguez and Huizar’s second son, a 5-year-old, is. There were initial reports Monday that the boy had been picked up from kindergarten by a man.
Just months before the shooting, Rodriguez told a Benton County Superior Court judge she believed she and her children were in danger because of Huizar’s mental and emotional instability.
She filed for a custody change just days before the shooting.
Currently, Huizar is only charged with her death but not his girlfriend’s inside his South Highlands Boulevard home.
Huizar was previously ordered by courts to stay away from Rodriguez and his girlfriend.
School surveillance cameras reportedly showed him approach Rodriguez with a .40 caliber gun and fire multiple shots about 3:20 p.m., according to court documents.
After she fell onto the gravel, Huizar fired several more times, said the documents. Police found eight .40 caliber shells on the ground.
Sexual assault
Huizar had been in trouble with the law since early February when he allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl after a night of drinking at his home.
His girlfriend witnessed the attack and after an argument grabbed their 10-month-old son and fled the home with the other woman. Huizar allegedly followed them until they found a Benton County sheriff’s deputy in Benton City.
When West Richland police went to his home on Highlands Boulevard, he refused to open the door and triggering a two-hour standoff until the Tri-Cities Regional SWAT team forced their way into the house.
His girlfriend’s age raised questions from prosecutors, who felt it was likely they had a sexual relationship before she could legally consent.
But according to court documents, this wasn’t the first time rumors about a sexual relationship between the couple had surfaced.
When he was a school resource officer at her school, he got a protection order against the then 13-year-old girl after she allegedly told others they had a sexual relationship.
He had known the girl when she was a student at the same middle school where Huizar had been a school resource officer. He had previously sought and received a protection order against the girl after accusing her of lying about them having sex.
He had been charged with second-degree rape and third-degree rape of a child in connection with the two crimes.
He posted a bond and was released.
Protection order
On Feb. 7, Rodriguez applied for a protection order aimed at keeping Huizar away from her and her kids for the first time, just days after he was initially accused of attacking the 16-year-old.
Court Commissioner Bronson Brown initially denied that request.
But Rodriguez returned on Feb. 9 with another request, this time after learning his 17-year-old girlfriend had been the same girl who had alleged that they were having sex.
Huizar was previously diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, alcohol use disorder, depression and insomnia. He had stopped treatment for those conditions, Rodriguez said.
The couple had a troubled history in recent years, she said in her request for a protection order. She said Huizar took their children in 2021 and enrolled them in a different school without her permission.
“The respondent made false claims against me with no evidence,” according to her statement to the court. “The claim was thrown out and the respondent was ordered to return the children.”
Their oldest son told her that Huizar was violent. He allegedly hit the children and his girlfriend, yelled and punched a TV, according to court documents.
He also allegedly left his infant in the care of his other children when he wanted to have sex with his girlfriend.
That time a protection order was issued, and he was supposed to stay 1,000 feet away from Rodriguez and her children. He was also ordered to turn over his gun.
