A 23-year-old man accused of carrying a high-capacity rifle outside a Corona apartment complex, prompting police to open fire when he didn’t surrender, was out of custody Thursday after posting an $85,000 bond.
Isaiah Janmar Goldmas of Ontario was arrested in August following a nearly monthlong investigation by the Corona Police Department.
Goldmas is charged with two counts of firearm assault, carrying a loaded gun prohibited by the California Department of Justice, exhibiting a firearm not in self-defense and resisting arrest.
On Wednesday afternoon, the defendant procured sufficient bail to secure his release from the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, where he had been jailed since Aug. 26.
He was slated to appear for a bail-setting conference Thursday, but Riverside County Superior Court Judge Gail O’Rane vacated the hearing after verifying Goldmas was no longer in custody.
The judge scheduled a felony settlement conference for Dec. 1 at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
According to Corona police, shortly before 6 a.m. on July 31, the defendant was spotted outside the Ashton Apartments at 2178 Stoneridge Drive, allegedly toting the rifle.
Detective Daniel Clary said that frightened witnesses called 911, after which patrol officers deployed a remote-controlled drone to scour the apartment complex, where they saw Goldmas “in the parking lot, holding the rifle.”
“When officers attempted to contact the suspect, an officer-involved shooting occurred,” the detective said, without specifying whether the defendant aimed the rifle, or what other alleged actions he took. “The suspect dropped the rifle and ran to the Deerwood Apartment Complex.”
Goldmas was not hit, and no officers were injured.
California Highway Patrol and Riverside police officers deployed to the location to assist, along with sheriff’s deputies, according to Clary.
“During the search, officers recovered the loaded semi-automatic rifle,” he said.
However, they couldn’t find the defendant.
In the ensuing weeks, investigators were able to confirm that Goldmas was the man in the parking lot, culminating in an arrest warrant being obtained and served on International Way in Ontario, where he was taken into custody without incident.
He has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.