TOLEDO, Ohio — An Ohio police officer and a suspect are dead following a standoff and shootout at a Toledo home, authorities said.
According to WNWO, the standoff began about 4 p.m. Monday when Toledo police located a suspect accused of spray-painting and trying to start a fire at Rosary Cathedral overnight. The suspect, who was armed with a handgun, fled into his Fulton Street home, Toledo police wrote in a Facebook post.
Officers then deployed tear gas into the home “in an attempt to have the suspect exit the home and peacefully surrender,” according to the Facebook post. The suspect came out with a firearm in each hand and opened fire, striking the head of Toledo police Officer Brandon Stalker, who was working security along the perimeter of the scene, authorities said. Stalker, 24, was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he died, police said.
“A perimeter was established around the house, and Toledo police critical incident negotiators were called to the scene,” the post read. “The suspect did not participate in the more than two hours of de-escalation through negotiation.”
Police also fatally shot the suspect, later identified as 27-year-old Christopher Harris, the Facebook post read. He was pronounced dead at an area hospital, police said.
Stalker, who joined the department in 2018, is survived by his fiancée and a baby, WNWO reported.
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