By Associated Press - Wednesday, January 6, 2021

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Members of a federal and local law enforcement task force shot a person to death Wednesday in Connecticut’s capital city while trying to arrest another man with a history of illegally possessing firearms, authorities said.

The person who was shot in Hartford’s North End was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead, city and state police said. No law enforcement officers were injured. It was the second fatal shooting in the past two weeks in Hartford by law enforcement officers.

Trooper Josue Dorelus, a spokesperson for state police, said the person died after exchanging gunfire with the task force members as they were trying to arrest the other man. The connection between the person and the other man wasn’t released.

New Haven State’s Attorney Patrick Griffin said an FBI agent and New Britain police officer on the task force fired their weapons at the person, whose name was withheld pending notification of relatives.

Federal and local officials were investigating.

The shooting happened as members of the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force, which includes local police officers, went to take Brandon Spence into custody for violating the conditions of his supervised release from prison, according to Hartford police and Thomas Carson, a spokesperson for U.S. Attorney John Durham. Spence was not shot, Carson said.

Spence was arrested in 2018 for illegally possessing a handgun on the same Hartford street where Wednesday’s shooting occurred. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

Spence was detained Wednesday pending a court hearing. A message seeking comment was left Wednesday for Spence’s lawyer in the 2018 criminal case.

On Dec. 26, Hartford Officer Ashley Martinez shot Shamar Ogman to death after police said Ogman pointed a rifle at officers. That shooting also is under investigation.

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