Two Los Angeles police officers were shot at Sunday night while they drove their patrol car in what police are calling an “unprovoked attack.”
The officers from the LAPD’s 77th Division were responding to an unrelated call about 9:30 p.m. in the Vermont-Slauson neighborhood of South Los Angeles when two men allegedly fired several rounds in the direction of their patrol car, a local CW affiliate reported.
“This was a completely unprovoked attack,” LAPD Capt. Lillian Carranza told the station.
One of the officers reportedly returned fire toward the shooters, but it was unclear whether any suspects were hit. Neither officer was injured.
Police detained one man, whose name was not released, and recovered a weapon at the scene. A massive manhunt with at least 60 law enforcement personnel searched for a second suspect, who was not found. The search was called off Monday morning, the CW affiliate reported.
Though the motive is unclear, Capt. Carranza said officers were on “heightened awareness mode” amid rising anti-police sentiment.
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“The officers know to be aware of the environment and what is taking place nationwide,” she told the station. “You will not see a Los Angeles police officer working alone.”
The shooting comes after New York City police Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos were fatally shot Dec. 20 in an ambush-style attack as they sat in their patrol car in Brooklyn. The shooter, Ismaaiyl Brinsley, said in a social media post that he wanted revenge for the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner.
Det. Meghan Aguilar said it was unclear whether Sunday’s shooting had any connection to the shooting of Liu and Ramos.
“We’re unaware of any specific ties to this happening in New York. Of course that’s something we’ll be looking at,” she told a local CBS affiliate. “It’s a nationwide conversation right now, so it’s not something we’ll discount or ignore.”
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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