The FBI has confirmed that two agents were killed and three wounded on Tuesday morning, as they served a federal search warrant in a case involving violent crimes against children in south Florida.
The suspect also died at some point during a standoff in which he barricaded himself inside a home, said special agent Michael D Leverock of FBI Miami.
Two of the wounded agents were taken to hospital to be treated and were in stable condition, Leverock said, adding that the names of the deceased agents would not be released immediately. The suspect’s name was not released.
Christopher A Wray, the FBI director, identified the two slain agents as Daniel Alfin and Laura Schwartzenberger. Wray said one of the three injured agents did not require hospitalization.
“Every day, FBI special agents put themselves in harm’s way to keep the American people safe,” Wray said in a statement. “Special agent Alfin and special agent Schwartzenberger exemplified heroism today in defense of their country. The FBI will always honor their ultimate sacrifice and will be forever grateful for their bravery.”
Television video showed police motorcycles, with lights flashing, escorting a fire rescue truck that was bringing the body of one of the agents to the medical examiner’s office in nearby Dania Beach. Law enforcement officials from numerous agencies lined up to pay their respect as a flag-covered body was removed from the vehicle and taken inside.
The acting attorney general, Monty Wilkinson, was briefed on the shooting and was closely monitoring the situation, the justice department said.
About four shots were heard at about 6am, said Julius McLymont, whose house borders the Water Terrace apartment complex.
“Boom, boom, boom, boom,” he said, adding that he thought it was a car backfiring but about two minutes later heard another volley of about five shots.
He went outside and looked over his fence as police cars and ambulances rushed in. Then he saw officers working on someone lying on the ground, who was then loaded into an ambulance.
A Swat team appeared next, McLymont said, with officers donning riot gear. Then they went around the building, yelling “Go! Go! Go!”
McLymont said he could not see the apartment where the shooting happened.
Authorities did not immediately release any information about the suspect. Another large contingent of officers gathered outside a Fort Lauderdale hospital where victims were taken, according to TV coverage.
Sunrise police tweeted about the heavy police presence and the closure of surrounding roads. The shooting happened in Water Terrace, a complex of multi-unit homes. Hours later, police urged its residents to remain inside and be patient while law enforcement officers blocked the entrances to their community.
There have been several other shootings throughout the FBI’s history in which two agents have died, according to the bureau’s Wall of Honor.
In South Florida, the infamous “Miami Shootout” in 1986 claimed the lives of agents Ben Grogan and Jerry Dove, in a gun battle with two heavily armed robbery suspects who were also killed. Five other FBI agents were wounded in that shooting, which led the bureau to upgrade the weapons that agents carry.
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