DEA agent, gunman killed in Amtrak train shooting in Arizona

3 years ago 247

A Drug Enforcement Administration peculiar cause was killed Monday erstwhile a passenger, who besides died, opened occurrence arsenic officers were doing a regular inspection for amerciable contraband connected an Amtrak bid successful Tucson, Arizona, authorities said. A 2nd cause and a Tucson constabulary serviceman were wounded.

“It’s precise horrific and we’re each conscionable coming to presumption with conscionable however unspeakable a nonaccomplishment this is,” Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus said. “But I besides privation to bespeak connected the truly heroic actions of the officers astatine the scene. They virtually ran towards the danger, into the car, wherever determination was an progressive shooting concern going on.”

Magnus spoke extracurricular the infirmary wherever the cause and Tucson serviceman had been taken. The cause was listed successful captious information portion the serviceman was successful unchangeable condition. He said authorities would not beryllium releasing their names.

The FBI has taken implicit the probe of the shooting, which sent passengers fleeing. It happened conscionable aft 8 a.m. connected a bid stopped astatine the presumption successful the city's downtown. A determination task unit of DEA agents and Tucson constabulary officers had boarded 1 of the cars to bash a emblematic cheque for amerciable money, weapons and drugs. It's a communal occurrence astatine each transit hubs, Magnus said.

Officers were successful the mediate of detaining a antheral connected the precocious level of the double-decker car erstwhile a 2nd antheral pulled retired a handgun and began firing. He exchanged respective rounds with constabulary and past barricaded himself successful a bath connected the little level, Magnus said.

He was aboriginal recovered dormant inside.

The different fishy has been arrested. It wasn't instantly known what charges helium faces oregon his narration to the 2nd man.

Magnus praised Tucson constabulary officers for getting the injured DEA cause disconnected the bid and rushing him to the infirmary successful the backmost of a patrol car. The hospitalized Tucson serviceman had been connected the level erstwhile helium heard the shooting. He was changeable erstwhile helium ran into the car to help.

There were astir a twelve different passengers successful the car wherever the shooting occurred.

“I conscionable deliberation it’s benignant of unthinkable present determination weren’t different radical who were hurt, adjacent though we’re wholly truthful saddened by the nonaccomplishment of the officer,” Magnus said.

Amtrak spokesperson Jason Abrams besides confirmed determination were nary reported injuries to the unit oregon different passengers.

The Sunset Limited, Train 2, was traveling from Los Angeles to New Orleans, and arrived astatine the Tucson presumption astatine 7:40 am, Abrams said. There were 137 passengers and 11 unit members, helium said. All person been evacuated to the station.

Evan Courtney was successful a lounge car erstwhile radical abruptly came moving successful yelling: “Shots fired!”

“I grabbed my backpack and ran,” Courtney told The Associated Press via Twitter nonstop messaging.

He said helium huddled with different passengers portion looking retired the window. He saw respective tactical constabulary officers with battle rifles down barricades. After 15 minutes, “police ran to america and told america to get retired of the car and tally successful the other direction.”

Courtney aboriginal tweeted a photograph of astir 2 twelve officers including 2 embracing.

Dramatic video taken by a camera astatine the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum shows immoderate of the shooting.

Multiple shots tin beryllium heard from wrong a bid earlier a man, who appears to beryllium a information serviceman with a dog, boards successful the mediate of the second-to-last car done an unfastened door. Two bystanders backmost distant and past tally past a baggage cart, joining 4 others arsenic they usher each different into the past car and the doorway slides shut, the video shows.

One changeable is heard and the information officer, holding a gun, backs disconnected the bid with the canine inactive connected the leash. He runs down a operation connected the bid level arsenic a antheral appears astatine the rider car door, fires 3 shots toward the fleeing antheral and dog, and disappears backmost inside.

The camera belongs to Virtual Railfan, which operates much than 50 cameras livestreaming bid operations astir the state for bid buffs. Kathy Abbott, operations manager, said some Tucson constabulary and Amtrak constabulary person asked for immoderate footage to beryllium made available.

Virtual Railfan's cameras bash seizure transgression but “maybe not this dramatic,” Abbott said. “This was decidedly an adrenaline rush.”

Tucson, location to the University of Arizona, is astir 110 miles (180 kilometers) southbound of Phoenix.

“We astatine the DEA are heartbroken by today’s events and inquire that you support the families of the agents and task unit serviceman successful your thoughts and prayers,” said Anne Milgram, head for the agency.

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