A huge police operation is underway to track a shooter who ambushed and shot two police officers in the Los Angeles district of Compton. The victims are a 24-year-old man and a 31-year-old woman. Thankfully, both officers have now left surgery and look likely to survive the horrific ordeal.
In the video, an individual with a handgun walks up to the window of a stationary patrol car and opens fire, the suspect then runs away.
The incident took on an added sinister element when the hospital the officers were being treated in was surrounded by anti-police protestors. The small group chanted "we hope they die" and "death to the police". A journalist was also arrested.
At present, there is no particular motive known for the shooting though many are speculating whether it was a pre-meditated act carried out by those opposed to the police and is related to the ongoing protests that have engulfed the United States this summer. Compton is well known both in the United States and abroad as an area of large scale gang activity and has been referenced in both gangster-rap and hip-hop songs for decades. Therefore, it is entirely possible that the act is entirely apolitical.
President Trump criticised the shooting, saying the suspects must be put to death once found, he said in a series of tweets:
"Animals that must be hit hard! ... If they die, fast trial death penalty for the killer. Only way to stop this!"
Animals that must be hit hard! https://t.co/zrOd9ZUl8o
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 13, 2020
If they die, fast trial death penalty for the killer. Only way to stop this! https://t.co/K3sKh28GjX
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 13, 2020
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department released a statement saying:
"Moments ago, 2 of our Sheriff Deputies were shot in Compton and were transported to a local hospital. They are both still fighting for their lives, so please keep them in your thoughts and prayers."
The LAPD also released a tweet saying:
"We stand with our brothers and sisters at the @LASDHQ tonight. The thoughts and prayers of the men and women of the LAPD, are with the two deputies that were ambushed while sitting in their vehicle earlier this evening."
We stand with our brothers and sisters at the @LASDHQ tonight. The thoughts and prayers of the men and women of the LAPD, are with the two deputies that were ambushed while sitting in their vehicle earlier this evening. https://t.co/zW4MKi6j6v
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) September 13, 2020
The L.A. County Board has also now offered a reward of $100,000 for anyone with information related to the crime.
While motive has yet to be determined, it would not be the first time that an individual motivated by political opposition to the police has attacked officers. In Dallas, Texas, in 2016, after a series of highly publicised killings of black individuals by police officers, Micah Xavier Johnson, an Afghan war veteran, ambushed officers killing 5 and wounding 9 others. It was the deadliest attack on law enforcement since the 9/11 attacks in 2001.
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