2 St. Louis officers shot in Ferguson; 1 suspect killed

ST. LOUIS — Two St. Louis police officers were shot while attempting to arrest suspects in suburban Ferguson on Wednesday, authorities said.

>> Read more trending news

One of the officers was in critical condition after being shot in the abdomen, St. Louis police Chief John Hayden told reporters.

Update 1:48 a.m. EST Jan. 27: Police arrested two of the suspects, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. Another suspect, who had been shot by police, died at an area hospital, the newspaper reported.

The two officers were shot just blocks from where Darren Wilson, a white Ferguson officer, fatally shot Michael Brown, an 18-year-old Black man, in 2014, the Post-Dispatch reported. That incident ignited months of unrest in the area.

Original report: Doctors said the officer’s condition had improved after surgery Wednesday evening, according to Hayden.

“He’s by no stretch of the imagination is he out of danger,” Hayden said. “Please everyone continue to pray. He’s not out of the woods.”

The other officer was wounded in the leg and was in stable condition, KTVI-TV reported.

The officers were shot around 1 p.m. CST while approaching a vehicle in Ferguson that police believed was tied to a homicide in St. Louis on Tuesday, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. When they approached the vehicle, someone inside fired shots, the newspaper reported.

Four people in the shooter’s car were in custody Wednesday, Hayden said. Their status was not immediately available, the Post-Dispatch reported.

The critically injured officer has been with the department for about 3.5 years, Hayden said. The other injured officer has been with the department for about 2.5 years. Both are in their mid-20s.

©2022 Cox Media Group