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Police officer, sheriff's deputy gunned down in upstate New York shootout, suspect dead
The incident took place shortly after 8 pm in Liverpool, which is about six miles north of Syracuse
A police officer and a sheriff's deputy in upstate New York were gunned down on Saturday night, April 13, during a gunfire exchange with a suspect. The suspect was also killed in the shootout, it has been reported. The incident took place shortly after 8 pm in Liverpool, which is about six miles north of Syracuse.
Syracuse Police Chief Joseph Cecile said during a press conference that the Syracuse Police Department and Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office were tracking a car before the shootout began.
The incident
Two Syracuse police officers initially failed to stop a suspicious vehicle but managed to notice the licence plate. They then tracked it to an address on Darien Drive in Liverpool. Cecile said that they asked the sheriff’s office to assist them after finding out that the suspect was armed.
The officers eventually found the car at the home and noticed there were objects that looked like guns inside the auto. They then “heard what sounded like someone manipulating a firearm from inside the residence," Cecile said, according to San Diego Union-Tribune.
At least one suspect then went on to exchange gunfire with the officers. The Syracuse officer, sheriff’s deputy and the armed suspect were subsequently shot. They were all transported to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse, and pronounced dead at the hospital. “We lost two heroes tonight,” Cecile said.
According to Onondaga County Sheriff Toby Shelley, police will be searching the house as part of the investigation into the incident, which is ongoing. “This is a dark day for Syracuse," Mayor of Syracuse Ben Walsh said. “This is our worst nightmare come true.”
Shelley said that a person at the home was also injured, according to WSYR. However, it is unclear if this person was involved in the shooting. Shelley added that there is no threat to the community at present.
