Ohio police officer shot and killed after being ambushed by gunman, authorities say
A suspect accused of fatally shooting a police officer Saturday night near Cleveland is dead, authorities said Sunday.
Officers were dispatched to a home in Euclid, Ohio, just before 10 p.m. when a caller said she and her child were threatened by the child's father, Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer said Sunday.
When police officers went to check the backyard, they were "ambushed by gunfire," Meyer said.
Officer Jacob Derbin was shot and taken to a hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries later that night, police said. No other officers were injured, Meyer said.
The suspect was found dead in a Shaker Heights, Ohio, home on Sunday, authorities said. Law enforcement officials would not elaborate on how the suspect died or say if officers and the suspect exchanged gunfire.
Meyer said tactical teams had been at the scene for hours and the suspect, identified by CBS affiliate WOIO as 24-year-old Deshawn Anthony Vaughn, was not willing to come out of the home. Nobody else was injured Sunday, authorities said.
Shaker Heights is about nine miles south of Euclid.
Derbin, 23, was a military veteran and had been with the police department for less than a year, according to Meyer. Derbin was engaged and set to be married in July, Meyer said. His father is also a Euclid police officer, according to Meyer.
"The Euclid Police Department asks that you keep the fallen Officer, his family, loved ones, and our agency in your thoughts and prayers," said Capt. Mitch Houser of the Euclid Police Department in a news release.
"Multiple law enforcement agencies" were involved in a search for the person responsible, Houser said.
Residents who live on the street where the incident happened said they recalled hearing about a dozen gunshots, NBC affiliate WKYC reported.
Meyer described the slain officer as "an amazing human being" with "a great heart" and "an incredible smile."
"The world's a better place with him in it," Meyer said.
Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer Gail said in a statement Sunday that "we find ourselves grappling with a profound sense of sorrow and disbelief." The mayor called on the community "to come together in solidarity and support, not only to honor a hero who selflessly served and protected us but also to offer strength to one another in this time of grief."
