EUCLID, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio police officer was shot and killed in an “ambush” while responding to a disturbance call over the weekend, and a suspect is being sought, authorities said Sunday.
Police officers in the Cleveland suburb of Euclid were dispatched to a home just before 10 p.m. Saturday after a reported disturbance.
“While the police were investigating, a gunman ambushed and assaulted an officer,” police said. The officer was taken to a hospital, but he later died, police said. Officials said multiple law enforcement agencies are searching for the person responsible. WKYC-TV Residents living down the street reported hearing a dozen gunshots.
Ohio’s attorney general, Dave Yost, identified the slain officer as Jacob Durbin and said he was in his first year with the department.
Yost vowed that the person responsible “will be found and receive the full measure of justice.” Yost’s office posted online photos of the 24-year-old suspect and the wanted vehicle.
“It is a cruel irony that a mother loses her son on Mother’s Day, and that this killing comes as we prepare to remember our fallen during Police Memorial Week,” Yost said in a statement. “For the family of this young officer and for the Euclid Police Department, my heart burns with anger at this injustice.”
“People please keep the fallen officer, his family, loved ones and our company in your thoughts and prayers,” Euclid police asked in a statement early Sunday morning.
“He was an amazing man. A big heart. Had an incredible smile. There’s a better place in the world with him,” said Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer. WJW-TV reported.
“We find ourselves struggling with deep sadness and hopelessness,” Mayor Kirsten Holsheimer Gail said in a statement Sunday. The mayor called on the community to “come together in solidarity and support, selflessly protect ourselves and honor a hero, but also give each other strength during this time of tragedy.”
