Nine people injured in Arizona shooting; suspect shot by police

Nine people were wounded in a shooting in Tucson, Arizona, early Sunday morning, police said. The suspected gunman was shot by officers at the scene and taken to a nearby hospital with life-threatening injuries. 

The incident took place at around 2 a.m. local time in downtown Tucson, where officers patrolling the area heard gunfire and “immediately began running toward the sound,” said Frank Magos, of the Tucson Police Department, at a news conference on Sunday. 

Those officers encountered the suspect, an adult man, and gave “repeated commands” before one fired his weapon, striking the suspect, Magos said.

All nine people wounded in the shooting, in addition to the suspect, received on-site emergency care by first responders before being hospitalized. According to Magos, many of the victims were shot in their extremities and taken to hospitals “in critical condition.” He did not identify any of them, but he did say everyone struck by gunfire was an adult.

Magos said that while the suspect’s identity “is known” to police, they would not be releasing it publicly at this time.

Few other details have come to light about the circumstances surrounding the shooting or what may have motivated it. Magos told reporters that the crime scene is “rather large.” 

The Pima County Sheriff’s Office will lead an investigation into the shooting, according to Tucson Police. The police department said it will simultaneously conduct an internal administrative probe into the officer who shot the suspect. All officers who responded to the shooting were wearing body cameras, the police department said.

Magos said that the investigation “is going to take a significant amount of time.” He did not respond directly when asked whether the suspected gunman is believed to have shot all nine others who suffered injuries, or how many officers may have fired their weapons, saying, “We’re not quite there.”