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Name of Sonoma Co. Deputy Who Shot Drug-Tripping Assault Suspect Released

BODEGA BAY (CBS SF) -- The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office on Saturday released the name of a deputy who shot an assault suspect in Bodega Bay on the July 4 holiday.

Deputy Jason Pasero, an 18-year veteran of law enforcement, shot a San Francisco man suspected of going on a LSD-fueled rampage that injured several people Thursday evening in the Bodega Harbor subdivision.

The suspect, Betai Koffi, 32, suffered major injuries and was in critical condition earlier this week at a hospital, sheriff's Sgt. Spencer Crum said.

Koffi was with friends at a rented Bodega Bay home and they tried to calm him down when he became delusional after allegedly taking two doses of LSD around noon.

Later, he reportedly took two more doses of the hallucinogenic drug and when friends tried to stop him from leaving around 8 p.m., he attacked them, Crum said.

Koffi allegedly punched a woman in the chest, stabbed a man with a pencil, choked another man and punched another man in the face at the rented house before he got into his rental car. Koffi then hit a car parked behind him when he backed out of a driveway, drove forward towards one of the men then drove the car into the garage, lodging it into the home, Crum said.

After leaving the car, Koffi ran down the street where a security guard confronted him. The suspect then picked up a landscape light and allegedly stabbed the guard in the chest with the end of the light, which was like a metal stake.

Koffi then allegedly stole the security guard's truck and drove away at high speed toward a man and woman walking on the road. The truck hit the woman causing significant injuries, and the man was hit in the arm but was not seriously injured, Crum said.

The suspect then allegedly drove toward another man and woman who were walking on a bluff. The woman was struck and suffered significant injuries.

Koffi continued driving off road, hit a wall and entered a side yard of a home before turning onto Pelican Loop, Crum said.

Sheriff's deputy Pasero arrived in a patrol car and parked in the street, and a California Highway Patrol officer pulled up to the left of the deputy's car. Koffi turned the truck and accelerated it toward the officer and the deputy, Crum said.

Pasero fired several shots from outside his patrol car at Koffi who then allegedly collided with the CHP vehicle. Koffi apparently kept accelerating the truck and Pasero fired several more rounds, three of them striking Koffi. The deputy took Koffi into custody and gave him medical aid until paramedics arrived, Crum said.

Santa Rosa police and the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office are investigating the officer-involved shooting, and the sheriff's office is investigating the assaults and events before the shooting, Crum said.

Koffi is under arrest at the hospital for two counts of attempted murder, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of carjacking, Crum said.

Pasero served 14 years with the San Bruno Police Department before being hired by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office four years ago. He is currently assigned as a resident deputy and canine handler in the Bodega Bay community, according to the sheriff's office.

© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Bay City News Service. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed

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