SAN DIEGO — A San Diego Community College District police officer is out of the hospital and recovering at home, after being stabbed multiple times last week on Fiesta Island.
The off-duty officer, Victor Bocoya, shot and killed his alleged attacker.
The family of the man who was killed is now speaking out, saying Brian Maloney suffered from mental illness, and the tragic incident could have been prevented. “He didn't like contact with other people, because he thought everybody, a lot of people, were after him,” said Larry Melton, the shooting victim’s step-grandfather.
The Chula Vista resident said he is still searching for answers about what happened on Fiesta Island last week. He said Maloney was a paranoid schizophrenic, who was living out of his van at the time of the incident. “Brian wasn't aggressive. If someone gave him trouble, they get trouble back in spades,” said Melton.
Police said the 41-year-old father four was walking his dog on Wednesday afternoon near the entrance to Fiesta Island, when he got into an altercation with the off-duty officer, who also had dogs inside his personal truck.
Melton said his grandson had recently gotten into a confrontation with the owner of a large dog in the same area. “He had a run-in with somebody a couple weeks ago. A guy's dog was running loose, and it picked up (Maloney’s) little dog in his mouth, and so Brian just beat the heck out of that dog and ran the guy off,” said Melton.
Whether or not the stabbing and fatal shooting was a case of mistaken identity is unknown, Melton said. “If you think somebody's after you, or going to get your dog, or going to kill your dog or something, you're going to be dangerous. He was big, and he could be dangerous,” said Melton, referring to his grandson.
Police told Melton his grandson stabbed the officer five times before Officer Bocoya pulled out his personal handgun and shot Maloney one time, killing him.
Maloney had been in and out of mental health facilities for years, according to the grandfather, most recently getting care at Impact in Linda Vista, which is a subcontractor for the County of San Diego.
CBS 8 asked Melton whether he thought the tragic incident could have been prevented?
“The basic problem with this whole thing is the County mental health people,” he said. “Everybody just let him go. They wouldn't treat him. They give him a few meds, you know, and he’s back on the street in two days.”
The San Diego police homicide unit is handling the investigation. The incident is being treated as an officer-involved shooting. SDPD’s investigation will be reviewed by the District Attorney's office to determine if the officer bears any criminal liability.