Kings County deputy injured in Paso Robles shooting returns to work

KINGS COUNTY, Calif. - Kings County Deputy Sheriff Blake Bursiaga returned to work Wednesday after sustaining a gunshot wound to his leg while searching for a suspect in Paso Robles last week.

Deputy Bursiaga was greeted by a crowd in the parking lot to show him how grateful they are for his heroic actions.

Bursiaga has been with the Sheriff's Office for seven years and has served on their SWAT team for about one year. He is one of several law enforcement officers who were wounded during the search for the active shooter in Paso Robles last week. He was reportedly wounded while dragging a fellow officer to safety.

Suspect Mason James Lira was found hiding out by the Salinas River on Thursday. After multiple officer-involved shootouts, Lira was hit and later pronounced dead at the scene.

Wednesday morning, Deputy Bursiaga returned to work in a light duty capacity.