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Mass. state police slay suspect who fired at trooper

By Thomas J. Morgan    Email this author |   Email this entry

NEW BEDFORD Mass. –– A suspect in a drug raid on Thursday fired at and struck a Massachusetts state trooper, whose body armor protected him from harm. That suspect was slain in turn, the state police said in a news release.

Neither the trooper nor the dead man was identified immediately. The police said they were trying to contact the suspect's family.

The police said the incident began at 6 a.m. when members of the Massachusetts State Police Special Tactical Operations [STOP] Team went to 21 Shawmut Ave. to execute a warrant to search for narcotics. They announced their presence and then approached an interior door that led to the first floor apartment that was the target of the warrant, according to the news release.

As the troopers approached the second door, multiple gunshots suddenly were fired through the wall next to the door at the troopers, the police said. As the troopers were breaching the door, one member of the entry team was struck in the torso by one of the shots fired from within the apartment. Fearing for the officers' safety, a trooper or troopers discharged their weapons, the police said. As a result of that discharge, a male occupant of the apartment was shot and suffered fatal injuries.

The trooper who was shot was wearing protective body armor that absorbed the impact of the bullet. Because of his protective armor, the trooper suffered no immediately apparent injuries.

Massachusetts State Police employ the STOP Team, the department's tactical entry team, in execution of warrants when information suggests that suspects may be armed.