
The shooting happened in the area of Colorado Avenue.
Elyria Police Chief James Welsh told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that the Lorain officers had responded to the dead end of River Bend Drive at about 1 p.m. that day.
They encountered the suspect at the end of the road, with his vehicle parked nearby. The suspect ambushed them with a high-powered rifle, he said. Officers returned fire.
The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene, though Welsh could not confirm whether the suspect was shot and killed by officers or whether he died by suicide.
“This is a difficult day for the Lorain Police Department and the law enforcement community,” Welsh said. “We pray for the officers’ families. I want to extend my prayers and condolences to the Lorain Police Department and all the law enforcement officers that responded here today to assist in this investigation.”
Welsh said authorities are confident they have identified the suspect — whose last known address was in Lorain — but he declined to release the man’s name.
He is believed to have been the only suspect involved in the shooting.
“This area is safe,” Welsh said, adding that multiple tactical teams searched the area on Wednesday. “There’s no danger to anybody who travels along Colorado Avenue.”
River Bend Drive terminates near a wooded area not far from the Black River, Welsh said.
Two officers were seriously injured and flown to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, a Level I Trauma Center. Another officer was transported to Mercy Health – Lorain Hospital.
Welsh declined to identify the officers, pending updates on their conditions and family notifications.
Welsh could not say why the officers had initially responded to the area.
Elyria police are leading the investigation, with support from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Anyone with information on the shooting is urged to call Elyria police at 440-323-3302.
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