Guns, ammo, tactical gear seized from home of cook who threatened mass shooting at California Marriott
The suspect's coworkers alerted authorities after he threatened a mass shooting.
Police seized multiple guns, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and tactical gear from the home of a 37-year-old California man who allegedly threatened coworkers and guests at the hotel where he worked as a cook.
A Long Beach Marriott colleague of Rodolfo Montoya's contacted the Long Beach Police Department on Monday after Montoya threatened to carry out a mass shooting there.
A search of Montoya's Huntington Beach home on Tuesday revealed the weapons cache, which included high-capacity magazines and assault rifles, all of which are illegal to possess in California.
Montoya has been charged with manufacturing and distributing assault weapons, possession of an assault weapon and making a criminal threat, the LBPD said in a statement on Wednesday. He's being held on $500,000 bail at the city jail in Long Beach.
"In recent months, we have seen several tragic incidents that have resulted in many lives lost," Police Chief Robert G. Luna said in the statement. "The witnesses who came forward and the diligence of our employees involved in this investigation very likely prevented a threat of violence and saved many lives."
Luna thanked the hotel employee for coming forward with the information.
"This incident," Luna added, "is excellent example of the 'See Something, Say Something' philosophy and how critical it is to report suspicious activity to law enforcement."
ABC News' Jennifer Watts and Alex Stone contributed to this report.
