Newly released body camera footage shows the moment Burbank Police K-9 Spike was fatally shot.
Last November, law enforcement performed a traffic stop on a vehicle just off the 5 Freeway near Buena Vista Street. After the driver and the passenger told officers they didn’t have identification on them, they were asked to step outside the vehicle.
Shortly after stepping outside the vehicle, 37-year-old Jose Domingo Ayala Alas ran away from police on the freeway and entered an embankment on the other side of the freeway through a maintenance door.
Refusing to surrender to police, the man hid in some bushes near the embankment as officers tried to get him to comply. Eventually, Ayala opens fire on Spike, seriously injuring him.
The K-9 retreated and returned to his handler. He was then rushed to an emergency veterinarian but ultimately died of his injuries.
Ayala was shot and killed by officers after exchanging gunfire later that night. Police said the suspect was a documented 18th Street gang member with arrests for possession of weapons, including firearms.
Spike’s death broke the hearts of officers with the Burbank Police Department. The community and surrounding law enforcement entities offered an outpouring of support to the department as the K-9 was publicly mourned.
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