Policeman killed on duty in shooting with suspects of home invasion in west U.S.

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- A police officer was shot and killed in response to a report of home intrusion in an area about 23 kilometers away from Tacoma in Washington state on the U.S. west coast, the state's Pierce County Sheriff's Department (PCSD) said Monday.

The PCSD announced on its facebook page that the 34-year-old police officer, Daniel McCartney from its department, who was seriously injured in responding to a home invasion late Sunday night, has "lost his life in the line of duty" in protecting the citizens of Pierce County.

The police said McCartney was shot while he was chasing a male suspect on foot during an emergency call response at a home where screaming was heard and a scuffle took place in Pierce County, the second most populous county in Washington.

One of the suspects was killed on the spot and the other one was at large, for whom the police have launched a huge manhunt.

A handgun was recovered at the scene, and investigators believed preliminarily that it may have been the gun used to shoot the slain police officer.

A police spokesman said the police authorities believed there was a gunbattle between McCartney and the home intruders during the fatal encounter.

McCartney is the first police officer killed in the line of duty in the Seattle area since Nov. 30, 2016 when a Tacoma police Officer was fatally shot in response to a domestic-violence call, local media said. Enditem