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(Reuters) – A gunman shot and seriously wounded two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies while they were sitting in their patrol car Saturday night in an attack that was captured on video.
Footage of the incident released by the sheriff’s department showed the suspect approaching the parked vehicle on foot in the city of Compton and firing a pistol through the passenger side window before fleeing.
“The gunman approached officers and opened fire without warning or provocation,” the department said on Twitter.
A male and female deputy suffered multiple gunshot wounds and were in critical condition undergoing surgery overnight, he said. The suspect is still at large.
“At this point, we have a very, very generic description of a dark-skinned man and it came from one of the victims,” Captain Kent Wegener said at a news conference.
Images of the attack were recorded by a security camera at a nearby subway station, police said.
US President Donald Trump retweeted the video early Sunday, writing: “Animals to be hit hard!”
Later, referring to the deputies, Trump tweeted: “If they die, speedy trial, death penalty for the murderer. The only way to stop this!”
Some protesters gathered overnight in front of the St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, where officers were being treated, according to video from social media and the sheriff’s department.
“To the protesters blocking the entrance and exit of the HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOM yelling ‘We hope they die’ referring to 2 LA Sheriff’s ambushed today in #Compton: DO NOT BLOCK THE HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ENTRIES AND EXITS,” wrote the department in Twitter midnight local time.
He said two people were later arrested: a man who “refused to comply and cooperate” and a reporter for the NPR KPCC station. The department said the reporter did not identify herself as a member of the press.
Reporter Josie Huang said she was released from the county jail on Sunday morning.
“I’ve seen tweets from @LASDHQ and have thoughts and videos to share shortly after a bit of a break,” he wrote on Twitter.
(Reporting by Gabriella Borter and Aishwarya Nair; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Daniel Wallis)
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