Video shows Anaheim police unleash hail of gunfire on driver at end of chaotic chase

ANAHEIM, Calif. (KABC) -- Dramatic bodycam video released Friday shows the moment Anaheim police unleashed a hail of gunfire and killed a driver at the end of a chaotic chase.

The pursuit began after a report of shots fired at the Kona Motel on Brookhurst Street in Anaheim April 16. Video from the body-worn cameras of responding officers shows a man pleading for help outside the motel.

"I need an ambulance now... He shot me in the stomach," the shooting victim says in the video.

Police quickly spotted the gunman's pickup truck fleeing the motel, prompting a pursuit.

Night-vision aerial video from a law enforcement helicopter shows police slam into the truck - pushing it onto the sidewalk - after the driver got stuck in traffic. The driver kept fleeing but the push onto the curb was successful in damaging the truck's tires and sparks started to fly from the vehicle.

A PIT maneuver ended the chase a short time later on an empty street in Santa Ana.

Officers opened fire when the driver, believed to be armed, refused to exit the truck. Bodycam video shows officers firing a barrage of bullets, killing the suspect.

Despite the hail of bullets, a passenger in the truck was not injured. Officers then removed the driver from the car and performed CPR before he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver was identified by police as Danny Lee Cuelho, 51, of La Habra.

Police say a gun was found inside the pickup truck.

"The handgun located in the truck was determined to be the weapon used to shoot the victim at the motel parking lot," Anaheim police Sgt. Jacob Gallacher said.

A use-of-force investigation is underway and will be reviewed by the Orange County District Attorney's Office to determine if the officers' actions were within the law.

Video released by Anaheim police can be viewed here.