A sheriff’s deputy was killed and another wounded during a shootout at an auto garage near Sacramento, California.
Deputy Mark Stasyuk, 27, was fatally shot in Rancho Cordova, just outside the Californian capital, on Monday. He taken to a nearby hospital but pronounced dead shortly afterwards.
Deputy Julie Robertson, 28, was shot in the arm but is in stable condition in hospital.
Deputy Mark Stasyuk, 27, who was fatally shot in the chest in Rancho Cordova, just outside the Californian capital on Monday. He had been at the Sheriff’s department for almost five years
A male suspect and a bystander were also shot during the exchange of gunfire but both are expected to fully recover.
The suspect’s identity has not yet been released, but he is reportedly awake and speaking to officers.
The two deputy sheriffs had responded to a call around 1.30pm Monday regarding a disturbance at Pep Boys garage between the suspect and an employee.
The shooting happened about 1.50pm in the area of Folsom Boulevard and Olson Drive.
According to Sheriff Scott Jones, the suspect began firing at Stasyuk and Robertson as soon as they approached him. Neither was aware that he was carrying a gun.
‘They were arriving at what we would consider a routine call of a business owner having a conflict with a customer,’ Jones said.
‘As soon as they arrived and engaged the subject he turned as if to run or flee and then immediately turned around and started firing without warning.
Department spokesman Sgt. Shaun Hampton said the suspect is in custody. The shooting occurred on Monday afternoon at a Pep Boys auto parts store in Sacramento County. The suspect was apprehended in the car park of the nearby Furniture Mattress Outlet
‘It’s incredibly difficult for all of us,’ he added.
Stasyuk was reportedly hit in the ‘upper body,’ while Robertson was hit in the arm. She and other officers returned fire as the suspect fled the scene.
He was apprehended by officers outside a nearby Furniture Mattress Outlet and taken to UC Davis Medical Centre.
According to audio obtained by Mercury News, a male deputy can be heard saying: ‘OK, we’ve got the suspect down. We’ve got him at gunpoint. He’s lying face down on the ground. His gun is lying north of him about 25 feet from his location.’
Deputy Stasyuk had worked for the sheriff’s department for four and a half years. Deputy Robertson has been there for two and a half.
‘We are very thankful for his sacrifice and very sorrowful for his family,’ Linda Budge, Mayor of Rancho Cordova, said of Stasyuk.
Police vehicles block streets some distance away from there two Sacramento County sheriff’s deputies and a bystander were shot during an incident in Rancho Cordova
Californian Governor Jerry Brown said flags in the Capitol will be flown at half-mast in his honour.
This is the second fatal incident for the Sacramento County Sheriff Department. Last August, Deputy Robert French was killed and two California Highway Patrol officers were injured during an investigation into car-theft in Sacramento county.
Sheriff Jones suggested that residents should head to a protest being held by Black Lives Matter the following day, to show their support for law enforcement.
The organisation is demonstrating against a spate of fatal police shootings of African Americans, in particular Stephon Clark, an unarmed man killed in Meadowview six months ago.