Los Angeles Police Officer Fatally Shot In His Car Appeared To Have Been Targeted

A police officer in Downey, Los Angeles, was shot and killed in the parking lot of the Downey Police Department on Wednesday night.

Officer Ricardo Galvez had pulled around to the back of the police station, when two male suspects ran up and shot him in his car at 11 p.m., a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) said at a press conference Thursday. The suspects then got back in their car and took off.

"It appears that [Galvez] was targeted," the LASD spokesperson said. "It doesn't look like it was random."

Another Downey police officer who was driving by heard the gunshots and chased the suspects' car to Montebello where police have now detained several individuals who they are questioning. "We believe we may have one of the suspects," the LASD official said.

Another officer who checked the parking lot found Galvez's body inside his car. No weapons have been located yet.

Galvez, a five-year veteran of the force, was a "tremendous young man who loved serving the residents of Downey," police chief Carl Charles said at the news conference. Galvez, a U.S. Marine who served on two tours of Operation Enduring Freedom, had an "infectious smile" and a "beautiful family," Charles said.

"This department is hurting," the chief said. "Words cannot express the love and respect we have for Ricky."

from BuzzFeed - USNews http://ift.tt/1HZnleq