Early Saturday morning in southern Arizona, a shooting incident resulted in the deaths of two individuals, one of whom was a police officer. The tragic event also left five others injured, including another officer, as reported by the Gila River Police Department.
The incident unfolded around 2 a.m. local time when officers responded to a disturbance at a residence within the Gila River Indian Community, an Indigenous reservation situated 35 miles southeast of Phoenix. The situation escalated as multiple gunshots were fired in the midst of a large crowd.
Among those injured were two Gila River police officers, one of whom, Officer Joshua Briese, tragically succumbed to his injuries. The other officer is currently in serious but stable condition, while the remaining four individuals wounded are receiving medical care at local hospitals.
Officer Briese, who had been with the department for less than a year and was still undergoing field training, was mourned by the police department and the community at large. The department expressed its condolences and solidarity with the affected officers' families and all those impacted by the devastating incident.
The Gila River Police Department is collaborating with the FBI to conduct a thorough investigation into the shooting. The Gila River Indian Community, home to around 14,000 residents, including members of the Pima and Maricopa tribes, is reeling from the tragedy as authorities work to unravel the circumstances surrounding the violent event.
