SANTA ANA – A 29-year-old man on probation for resisting a police officer has been charged with multiple felonies after he grabbed a Fountain Valley police officer’s gun, fired a round, and bit a police sergeant as officers were trying to arrest him for refusing to obey repeated orders to leave the Fountain Valley Police Department’s lobby last week. No one was injured by the gunfire.
Walter Corea Sanchez, 29, of Fountain Valley, has been charged with one felony count of assault with a semiautomatic firearm on a peace officer, one felony count of aggravated assault on a peace officer, two felony counts of obstructing or resisting an executive officer, one felony count of grossly negligent discharge of a firearm, one misdemeanor count of resisting a public officer with attempted firearm removal, one misdemeanor count of resisting a peace officer, and one misdemeanor count of disturbing the peace. He has pleaded not guilty.
Sanchez faces a maximum sentence of 31 years and eight months in state prison if convicted on all charges. He is currently on felony probation after he pled guilty in August to resisting an executive officer.
On Friday, December 19, 2025, at approximately 9:54 a.m., Sanchez is accused of entering the lobby of the Fountain Valley Police Department and yelling and acting erratically when officers tried to speak with him. Sanchez is accused of pacing back and forth for approximately ten minutes, yelling at officers and desk staff and raising his hands toward the faces of several police officers. Officers walked Sanchez out of the lobby and told Sanchez he needed to leave and that if he tried to enter the lobby again, he would be arrested.
Sanchez followed the officers back into the lobby, and when three officers approached to arrest him, he ran outside to the front of the police department. Officers again told Sanchez to leave, but instead, Sanchez is accused of placing his backpack on the ground and trying to take something out. Officers began to arrest Sanchez, but as he was being pulled to the ground, Sanchez is accused of grabbing one of the officer’s guns, pulling the trigger and firing off a round. No one was hit by the bullet.
Sanchez is also accused of biting a Fountain Valley police sergeant who was assisting in the arrest. The sergeant used his Taser on Sanchez multiple times, and Sanchez was taken into custody by four Fountain Valley police officers.
“A police badge should not be a target on the back of our law enforcement officers, our sworn protectors,” said Orange County District Attorney Spitzer. “A willingness to attack a uniformed police officer, grab the officer’s gun and fire it in an attempt to avoid arrest shows a complete disregard for the rule of law and the safety of our communities, and we will prosecute those acts of violence to the fullest extent of the law. We are so grateful that these officers were not seriously injured in what could have easily turned into a deadly tragedy.”
Deputy District Attorney Heather Heslep-Morrissey of the Crimes Against Peace Officers Unit is prosecuting this case.
Penalties faced by Walter Corea Sanchez
Based on the charges filed by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office for the incident on December 19, 2025, Walter Corea Sanchez faces a maximum sentence of 31 years and eight months in state prison if convicted on all counts.
The specific penalties are tied to the following charges:
- Assault with a Semiautomatic Firearm on a Peace Officer: One felony count.
- Aggravated Assault on a Peace Officer: One felony count (related to biting the police sergeant).
- Obstructing or Resisting an Executive Officer: Two felony counts.
- Grossly Negligent Discharge of a Firearm: One felony count.
- Attempted Firearm Removal: One misdemeanor count of resisting a public officer.
- Resisting a Peace Officer: One misdemeanor count.
- Disturbing the Peace: One misdemeanor count.
Because Sanchez was already on felony probation at the time of this incident (following a guilty plea in August 2025 for resisting an officer), he may face additional legal consequences for violating the terms of his probation.