St. Louis County's police chief said Thursday there was a massive ongoing search for the gunman who shot two officers during a protest in Ferguson, Missouri, and that investigators had possible leads as to who the shooter is. Chief Jon Belmar warned that in future, similar situations police, may shoot back.
According to preliminary reports, muzzle flashes were detected from about 125 yards away from the rally early Thursday, which took place just hours after the city's police chief resigned in the wake of a damning U.S. Justice Department report finding his force was rife with racial bias, Belmar told reporters.
In Washington, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder issued statements on the shooting of the two police officers, saying on Thursday that it was a "heinous assault" that threatens reforms under way in the Ferguson.
The two police officers were injured by gunfire during the rally outside of the Ferguson, Missouri, police department early Thursday.
2 officers shot in #Ferguson tonight. One officer from St Louis County. One officer from Webster Groves. #stl #officerdown
— St. Louis County PD (@stlcountypd)
March 12, 2015
Several users on social media posted photos of police carrying away an officer, allegedly wounded by gunfire.
Earlier in the day, Belmar told a press conference that one officer was shot in the face, while a second was hit in the shoulder. He added that the shots did not come from the crowd of protesters.
RT @NewsRevo: Carrying the officer away and guns drawn. #ferguson | pic via @wyze43 | @NewsRevo pic.twitter.com/W0X8xoDltQ”
— News Source LA (@NewsSourceLA)
March 12, 2015
Ferguson Lt. Col. Al Eickhoff told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he did not think either of the officers were from his department.
There were also reports on social media of a heavy police presence at a local hospital.
Police radio communications revealed that police were looking for a white Chevrolet, occupied by one female and three males, that drove away quickly from the scene.
Protesters had gathered in front of the Ferguson police department earlier Wednesday night to demand further reforms following a damning report by the U.S. Department of Justice which identified racially-biased practices in Ferguson municipal institutions, including Police, just hours after Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson announced that he had resigned from his post.
Jackson’s resignation is set to take effect on March 19.
The Ferguson police chief has been the focus of anger at racial discrimination within the city's police force since Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot dead by a white Ferguson police officer last summer.
A video of the moment shots rang out has been posted online: