2 Police Officers Ambushed, Shot at in ‘Unprovoked Attack’ in South Los Angeles: LAPD
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massive manhunt was underway in South LA in the early morning hours of
Dec. 29, 2014, after two officers were fired upon the previous night.
(Credit: KTLA)
Several rounds were shot in the direction of the officers, LAPD Capt. Lillian Carranza said.
“This was a completely unprovoked attack,” she added.
One of the officers returned fire toward the alleged gunmen, but it was not immediately clear whether either was hit.
Neither officer was injured.
Police detained one man and recovered a weapon at the scene, Aguilar said, declining to specify what type of firearm was found. She later clarified that he had not been arrested.
Police have not released the name of the person they had in custody. He was described only as a “person of interest,” according to Aguilar.
In the wake of the shooting, LAPD went on tactical alert and initiated a massive manhunt for the second shooter.
At least 60 law enforcement personnel from LAPD and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department searched a six-block area that encompassed Hoover, Vermont Avenue, Gage Avenue and 60th Street.
SWAT officers and K-9 units were also utilized in the manhunt, which was conducted on the ground and by air in the overnight hours.
The manhunt for the second person was eventually called off shortly before 5:30 a.m. He was not in custody, according to Aguilar.
“Our teams…did a very thorough and meticulous search and they were unable to locate that suspect,” she said.
A police helicopter was flying overhead South Los Angeles on Dec. 29, 2014, during a manhunt. (Credit: KTLA)
Hoover between Gage and 62nd was expected to be closed to the public for an additional four to six hours while the investigation into the shooting continued.
Residents in the area of Hoover and 52nd streets had been urged to stay indoors while the search was underway, according to a Facebook post from the LAPD’s 77th Street community police station.
Sunday night’s shooting occurred more than a week after two New York City police officers were fatally shot while they sat in their patrol car in Brooklyn.
NYPD officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu had been “assassinated,” according to New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton.
The gunman, who was later found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, had posted threats against police to social media prior to the incident, authorities said.
The shooting came amid increased anti-police sentiment and protests in the wake of high-profile deaths of African-Americans Michael Brown and Eric Garner at the hands of officers.
Carranza told KTLA that officers were on “heightened awareness mode.”
An LAPD mobile command post was set up after two officers were fired upon in South L.A. on Dec. 28, 2014. (Credit: KTLA)
Carranza added that officers were being deployed in two-person cars, and that the stations were taking precautionary measures.
“You will not see a Los Angeles police officer working alone,” she said.
A motive for the L.A. shooting was not known, however.
Anyone who witnessed anything suspicious in the area was asked to call 911.
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