Two Fairfax County Police Officers were shot, and a suspect is dead after a traffic stop in Northern Virginia Wednesday afternoon.
At 3:18 p.m., the Fairfax County Police Dept put out an alert on social media that two officers were shot while conducting a traffic stop. They were transported to a local hospital in non-life threatening condition. The shooting occurred in the 4000 block of Majestic Lane near Greenbriar.
Fairfax County Police held a press conference Tuesday evening led by Police Chief Kevin Davis, who, in the press conference, said he had reviewed body cam footage of the incident.
According to Davis, the incident occurred after the suspect was observed going at a high rate of speed. An officer conducting traffic surveillance in the area put on their emergency lights, and the suspect pulled over abruptly. A manner unbecoming of a routine traffic stop, according to Davis.
Davis said the suspect was immediately hostile and combative and refused to identify himself to officers.
According to Davis, as the interaction continued while the suspect remained in his car, he told the officer he was armed. As more backup officers arrived and through the course of the interaction, the initial officer who conducted the traffic stop repeatedly told the suspect to stop reaching for his firearm. Police Chief Davis said that the suspect had his gun in a holster around a belt over his clothes.
Davis then said another officer who arrived on the scene began to interact with the suspect and told him to stop reaching for his firearm and even tried to prevent the suspect from reaching for his gun, but the suspect was able to pull the gun out from his holster and began firing on the two officers who were standing at the driverside door of the suspect’s car. Davis said a third officer on the scene was able to fire back at the suspect, killing him.
The two officers were transported to a hospital where they are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Davis said the suspect was a 36-year-old resident of Fairfax County.
10 News will continue to update this story as we receive more information.