MENDOCINO COUNTY — Members of the Lake County Sheriff”s Office (LCSO) SWAT team have responded to a mutual aid request to assist with an ongoing manhunt.
According to Capt. James Bauman, public information officer, the LCSO SWAT team and a special enforcement K-9 team have been deployed to a remote area of Mendocino County to assist in the search for murder suspect Aaron Bassler, 35, of Fort Bragg.
Bassler is wanted in connection with the August murders of two Mendocino County men. He has been at large in the wilderness east of Fort Bragg for more than a month.
Bassler is believed to be heavily armed and has been dodging an extensive manhunt coordinated by the Mendocino County Sheriff”s Office since being tied to the two murders. The Mendocino County operation has involved multiple agencies, including the LCSO.
Shortly before noon Thursday, a team of three Alameda County Sheriff”s deputies assigned to the search were reportedly fired upon by Bassler in the area of Northspur Road, approximately 14 miles east of Fort Bragg. Bassler reportedly fled into the woods after the deputies returned fire. Several minutes later, another brief gunfight ensued between Bassler and the deputies, with Bassler fleeing into the woods again.
At approximately 3 p.m. Thursday, seven LCSO SWAT team members, a sheriff”s K-9 team and two supervisors were deployed to Mendocino County to join other allied agencies in an effort to close in on Bassler. They remain deployed to that operation as of Friday afternoon.
