Baton Rouge gunman 'killed at scene,' police say

The gunman who shot dead three police officers in Baton Rouge on Sunday was shot and killed at the scene, police confirm, but it remains unknown whether he acted alone.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab

17 July, 2016

Police initially believed there were two other assailants still at large [Getty]

The gunman who shot dead three police officers and wounded three others in the Louisiana capital of Baton Rouge on Sunday was killed, officials said.

Police initially believed there were two other assailants still at large, but hours later confirmed the dead gunman was the only one involved in the shooting.

"We believe the person that shot and killed our officers, that he is a person that was shot and killed at the scene," Louisiana State Police Superintendent Colonel Mike Edmonson told reporters.

"What we do not believe is we have any other shooter held up in the Baton Rouge area."

But investigators remain unsure whether he acted alone or received help from others.

"We are not ready to say he acted alone," Major Doug Cain said.

Two "persons of interests" had been detained in the nearby town of Addis, Cain added.

Earlier this month, officers shot dead a man after he targeted and killed five officers and injured seven others during a demonstration against the alleged murder of two black men at the hands of police.

Gunfire broke out as hundreds of people were peacefully gathered to protest fatal police shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota, causing scenes of chaos.

The deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota are once again fuelling debate about police use of lethal force, especially against African American.