The remains found inside a burned-out cabin in Big Bear were those of fugitive ex-LAPD Officer Christopher Jordan Dorner, the San Bernardino County Coroner's Office confirmed Thursday.
Officials in San Bernardino County said they used dental records to identify the remains of the 33-year-old fugitive seen in San Diego County several times in the past few weeks, including in Imperial Beach.
Officials have not yet announced the cause of death. Dorner's body was pulled from the charred remains of a Big Bear cabin, following a fire and epic gun battle that killed one San Bernadino County Sheriff's Department deputy and critically wounded another.
The dramatic battle capped one of the region's largest manhunts and prompted speculation about whether Dorner was killed in the gunbattle or whether he took his own life after the cabin was set ablaze by flamable gas canisters lobbed by police.
According to police, Dorner, a disgruntled former LAPD officer killed four people in a murderous rampage that spanned three counties and targeted police officers. It began on Feb. 3, when Dorner—also a former Navy lieutenant— allegedly gunned down the daughter and future son-in-law of an ex-police captain who represented him at a hearing that resulted in his dismissal from the LAPD.
The bodies of 28- year-old Cal State Fullerton assistant women's basketball coach Monica Quan and her fiancé, 27-year-old USC public safety officer Keith Lawrence, were found in Lawrence's car in the parking structure of their Irvine condominium building.
The next day, Dorner, 33, allegedly posted a 6,000-word manifesto on Facebook, vowing to kill named LAPD officers and their families. About 50 Los Angeles police officers and their families were being protected during the manhunt, authorities said.
Last Thursday, Dorner was allegedly involved in a shootout with Los Angeles police guarding an officer's home in Corona, leaving one officer with a graze wound to the head, police said.
About 20 minutes later, he allegedly fired on a pair of Riverside police officers stopped at a red light, killing Officer Michael Crain, 34, and wounding the other. The wounded officer was expected to recover.
Crain, an 11-year department veteran, was a former Marine. He is survived by his wife, Regina, and two children, Ian, 10, and Kaitlyn, 4. Crain left "an unforgettable impression" on everyone he met, Riverside police Lt. Guy Toussaint said. His funeral is set for Wednesday.
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department Detective Jeremiah MacKay
was part of force that trapped Dorner in the Big Bear cabin. He was shot and killed in the massive gunbattle that ensued.
—City News Contributed to this report.
