Dennis RomeroSee also: Another Officer Shot, This Time in South L.A. Area.
A man in black opened fire on two undercover detectives as they returned to the LAPD's Wilshire Division in Mid-City this morning, wounding both and putting the department on high alert.
Police were calling it an ambush, Officer Christopher No told us. The two victims were treated at a hospital and released, LAPD spokesman Kevin Maiberger told the Weekly. The shooter was on the loose, prompting a massive manhunt:
A 25-block perimeter around the station at 4861 Venice Boulevard near South La Brea Avenue was established, he said. About 200 officers had joined in the search for the gunman, and the department was on a citywide tactical alert, Maiberger said.
Three people had been detained for questioning but had not been arrested, the spokesman said.
The attack was reported about 4:30 a.m. when the detectives, in plainclothes and riding in an unmarked car, stopped at a parking lot gate and were shot at from behind by a suspect on foot, he said.
Officers returned fired, Maiberger said, and the suspect fled. It was unclear if he had been hit.
One detective was struck in a hand by gunfire while the other was wounded in the head, he said.
Credit: Ted Soqui for LA Weekly
The suspect, said to appear to be in his early to mid-30s, was in black clothing and wore a black hat, Maiberger said.
The detectives had been working a “burglary detail,” he said, before returning to the station for the night.
[Update at 12:48 p.m.]: LAPD Officer Susan Torres says the three people detained for questioning were released.
Credit: Ted Soqui for LA Weekly
The perimeter was being reduced and once streets are cleared people who live on them can go about their business, she said. However, those still inside the perimeter should stay put, police say: No work, no market, no playing catch in the front yard.
The two detectives sustained only minor injuries, with the one who was hit in the head suffering only a graze wound, Torres said.
[Update at 1:38 p.m.]: LAPD Commander Andrew Smith says 10 people have been detained for questioning and released so far.
“We're looking at video surveillance footage,” he said. “Dogs are searching the area.”
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