Anchorage police shoot suspect who fired at officers

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Anchorage police shot and killed a passenger in a car who had fired at officers, police said Sunday.

One officer hit in the upper body was was protected by body armour, police said.

The name of the person killed was not immediately released.

Officers with the Impaired Driving Enforcement Unit at 3:30 a.m. Sunday stopped a sedan at 5th Avenue, the main access point into downtown Anchorage from the north, and Reeve Boulevard. The car carried a male driver and four male passengers, police said. Their ages were not immediately released.

As the car was stopped, a passenger in the back seat pulled out a gun and fired shots at the officers, police said.

One officer was hit. The other, uninjured officer fired at the gunman, who was hit in the upper body and killed.

The officer struck by the gunman sustained non-life threatening injuries, police said, due to the officer’s body armour.

The state Office of Special Prosecutions will review the officer’s use of deadly force and determine whether it was justified.

The name of the officer who fired will be released after three days as called for by police department policy.