One officer died and another one was injured after a gunman opened fire on the pair of Rochester police officers, just hours after the city’s mayor declared a state of emergency over gun violence.
The officers, who have not been identified, were reportedly patrolling Bauman Street in the city’s northeast end when they were approached by a male suspect at around 9.15pm.
The man, who remains at large, then fired his gun and hit the pair of officers as well as a woman who was standing nearby.
One officer was rushed to Rochester General Hospital, while the other officer who was in critical condition was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital.
The officer who received serious injuries was reportedly confirmed dead shortly after midnight, having succumbed to his wounds, WHAM-TV reported.
“They were doing their jobs as police officers, and at least one male approached them and opened fire on them,” Rochester Police Lt Gregory Bello, a department spokesman, said to the New York Post.
Shortly after the incident, Rochester Mayor Malik Evans arrived at the scene to provide an update on the shooting, just hours after he’d declared a state of emergency over the city’s ongoing gun violence problem.
“This is a tragedy for our community,” he began. “Our police officers are out there sacrificing their lives for us every day. They perform their jobs in dangerous conditions as we go about our daily lives and we owe them a great debt of gratitude.”
Since the beginning of this year, there have been 41 people killed in the city of Rochester, with more than 80 per cent of those deaths being caused by guns. The city has removed 444 firearms from the streets, but there have still been 202 people shot.
“What I know that is with this emergency declaration, this will give us the ability to not only marshal other resources, but also be very targeted in areas to stop people from continuing to wreak havoc in our city," said Mr Evans during a press conference on Thursday announcing the declaration, which will effectively give the mayor’s office broad powers to bring the emergency under control utilising all possible resources.
“But the trajectory, unless we change something, will be the same,” the mayor added. “We will break records in terms of the bloodshed and carnage in our streets.”
The second officer was reportedly released from hospital after suffering a gunshot wound to the leg, 13WHAM reported.
Rochester police have yet to announce if any arrests have been made in connection to the shooting, but late last night several officers from neighbouring departments – including New York State Police, Irondequoit, Rochester, and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office – arrived at the scene of the crime to assist in tracking down any potential suspects.
Several streets were blocked off as part of the investigation well into the morning, according to KIRO 7.
A news conference with the mayor’s office and the Rochester Police Department was scheduled to be held later Friday.
