Salinas police search for man with gun after backpack of ammunition found

Salinas police officers are seeking a man who threatened officers Thursday night.

Around 9 p.m., officers were dispatched to the area of Mescal Court and Saguaro Drive for reports of a man with rifle or a shotgun. He was reported to be alone and not engaging in any sort of disturbance.

Two detectives arrived and walked to the corner of Buckhorn and Chamise drives when they heard a male voice yell, “Freeze!” The two took cover and gained access to a nearby home in order to scan the area from the second floor, but nothing was seen.

About 20 minutes later, an officer heard a shotgun blast nearby but didn’t see anything. Later, a backpack containing live shotgun rounds and an empty rifle case found at the corner of Buckhorn and Saguaro drives.

Officers worked in teams of four to conduct yard-to-yard searches and a CHP helicopter responded from San Luis Obispo to assist. They were on scene for more than two hours but never found the suspect, who is described as a white man , between 20-30 years of age, with short dark hair, medium build and medium height wearing a white t-shirt and blue or black pants.