WILLITS, 8/18/20 — A suspect has been arrested in the killing of a man and shooting of a second man in Covelo. The deceased has not yet been identified and no next of kin has been notified, of him it is only said that he was about 30 years of age.
Jameson Jackson, 34 of Ukiah, was arrested by Round Valley Tribal Police officers today, after being spotted in the area of Mina Road and the 162, and then handed over to deputies of the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, and booked into Mendocino County Jail — these events occurred late today and no bail had yet been set. An alleged possible accomplice, Shayla Guerrero, 31 of Covelo, was arrested yesterday with her bail set at $100,000. Jackson was previously convicted of a murder committed when he was only 15.
An account of the killing was provided in a press release from the MCSO but has not been independently verified. According to the press release, yesterday morning, the living gunshot victim, a 38 year old man from Santa Rosa, spotted his vehicle which had been stolen and followed it to a large cannabis grow. He waited outside the grow and sent a friend to notify Tribal Police. Jackson attempted to flee in the man’s vehicle but crashed. Allegedly, upon exiting the vehicle he then fired a single shot at the man, wounding him very slightly in the ear. However, the bullet continued on and struck a man who was not connected to the vehicle issue, killing him.
The wounded man was treated by an paramedics but not taken to the hospital.
Once law enforcement had been notified, a manhunt ensued, which included various local law enforcement agencies. In addition the MCSO’s “Marijuana Unit” had been working in the area with the California National Guard and their helicopter. That helicopter joined the search.
Here is the full press release from the MCSO:
DATE: “August 18, 2020”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Incident Number:
2020-20284
Crime/Incident:
187 PC [Homicide]
182 PC [Conspiracy]
32 PC [Accessory]
Location:
24400 block of Shady Lane in Covelo, CA
Date of Incident:
08-17-2020
Time:
11:00 AM
Victim(s):
Unidentified Adult Male (approximately 30 years of age, residence unknown)
Adult Male (38 year-old from Santa Rosa, CA)
Suspect(s):
Jameson Jackson (34 year-old male from Ukiah, CA)
Shayla Guerrero (31 year-old female from Covelo CA)
Written By:
Lieutenant Shannon Barney
Synopsis:
UPDATED PRESS RELEASE:
On 08-19-2020 at approximately 5:50 PM there was a possible sighting of Jameson Jackson in the area of Mina Road and Highway 162 in Covelo, California.
Officers from the Round Valley Tribal Police Department responded and subsequently located Jackson before the arrival of Sheriff’s Deputies who were busy conducting fire evacuations in Covelo at the time of the sighting.
Jackson was placed under arrested and thereafter released to Sheriff’s Office Detectives who will be having Jackson booked into the Mendocino County Jail on the listed charges. Bail has yet to be determined as of the issuance of this updated press release.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the Round Valley Tribal Police Department for their assistance in this investigation.
ORIGINAL PRESS RELEASE:
On 8/17/2020 just after 11:00 the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) started receiving information from the Covelo area about possible shooting from a vehicle near the Round Valley Indian Health Center on Biggar Lane. A short time later reports were coming in that one person was shot, just east of the Health Center on Shady Lane with a possible suspect vehicle, a red Ford pick up, seen leaving the area. A short time later the vehicle was spotted by an Officer with the Round Valley Indian Tribal Police. The vehicle was seen traveling west bound on Biggar Lane and continued across Highway 162, almost striking the Tribal Police Vehicle. The vehicle then pulled into the Tribal Cemetery on the west side of Highway 162. The Tribal Police Officer attempted to contact the female driver and male passenger but they fled into a wooded area where he lost sight of them.
Another Tribal Police Officer responded to the east end of Shady Lane on a report of someone being shot there. The Officer located two victims who appeared to have been shot. An ambulance responded and it was determined one victim, an unidentified adult male, approximately 30 years of age, was confirmed deceased at the scene. The second victim, a 38 year old adult male, suffered a minor gunshot wound and was treated by the ambulance crew and released.
The Mendocino County Detective Unit responded, as did the Mendocino Multi-Agency SWAT Team, the Mendocino Major Crimes Task Force, the California Highway Patrol and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The MCSO Marijuana Unit had been working the area with the California National Guard Counter Drug Team Helicopter which also responded to assist. A “Shelter in Place” order was issued due to the armed and dangerous suspect loose in the area. A MCSO trailing bloodhound was used to track the suspects from the vehicle into the Mill Creek drainage. The adult female, Shayla Guerrero, who had been the driver of the vehicle was located in the creek just north of the cemetery and detained. The bloodhound believed to follow the creek bed for approximately 1 mile west, until it lost the scent at the intersection of Refuge Road and Crawford Road. A continued search of approximately 3 square miles was unable to locate the suspect and the shelter in place order was lifted at 7:30 PM.
The decedent was located in a very large marijuana growing operation encompassing approximately 15 acres. A search warrant was drafted for the scene. The second gunshot victim, was interviewed, and indicated his vehicle had been stolen the day before. He and another party saw the vehicle pull into the the marijuana growing area where he waited while the other party left to locate Tribal Police. While the first party waited, and third person, uninvolved with the vehicle issue, stood nearby. At one point the suspect entered the vehicle to flee and the vehicle struck a large pole, The suspect exited and fired one round from a handgun at the first party, striking him causing a minor wound. The round was believed to have continued on, striking the second party, who ultimately succumbed to his injuries. MCSO has not been able to make a positive identification of the decedent and next of kin have not been located.
Detectives learned the shooting suspect was Jameson Jackson, a 34 year old while male out of Ukiah. Several weeks early Jackson had fled from law enforcement in the Calpella area where deputies were seeking to arrest him on four outstanding warrants for his arrest. He currently has felony warrants for his arrest for making criminal threats, second degree robberty, cruelty to a child, disuading a victim by force, rape by force, failing to appear on charges, committing a felony while on bail for a felony. He also has misdemeanor warrants for his arrest for cruelty to a child, battery, violation of a court order, and violation of probation.
Shayla Guerrero was arrested for conspiracy and accessory and booked into the Mendocino County Jail. She is being held on $100,000 bail. An arrest alert has been issued for Jackson related to the homicide and the outstanding warrants. If anyone has any information related to Jackson’s whereabouts please do not approach him, consider him armed and dangerous, and call 911 or MCSO Dispatch at 707-463-4086.
Approved by:
Captain Gregory L. Van Patten #1184