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A spate of complex and deadly crime in Tucson, Arizona, saw a suspect set a house on fire, shoot several emergency responders and kill two people, police said. Two or three children are also reported missing.
The Sunday rampage took place at three different crime scenes.
Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus said firefighters were dispatched to a mid-afternoon blaze and, “around” the same time, paramedics were dispatched to a medical emergency in a park near the scene of the fire.
According to Magnus, the suspect got out of his silver SUV in the park and unloaded his gun at paramedics, hitting the driver in the head and the passenger in the arm and chest. Then, while firefighters were dealing with the blaze, the same suspect arrived at the scene and “started[ed] shoot both firefighters and neighbors, ”Magnus said.
In the burning residence, a fire captain was shot in the arm and a neighbor died after being shot in the head, police said. A burnt body was found inside the house during the second fatality in the rampage. Police believe the fire was started by the gunman.
After the suspect fled from the second crime scene, he was chased by a police vehicle and crashed into his SUV in the responding officer’s car. Then the officer managed to get out of his vehicle and shoot his gun at the 35-year-old suspect, who was reportedly left in critical condition. Police said they believed he was the only suspect in all three crime scenes.
The EMT driver who was shot is also seriously injured, police say, but other emergency responders and neighbors who were affected reportedly suffered minor injuries. The two people who were killed have not been named and it is not known whether the suspect knew either of the victims.
The complicated situation took another turn when authorities confirmed that “two or three” children “associated” with the burning residence were missing, but did not provide further information. Magnus described the rampage as a “very tragic and truly gruesome incident with many unknowns”, saying it will require a “long and complex” investigation.
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero said in a press release on Twitter: “I ask our entire Tucson community to join me in reflecting and praying for the victims of this afternoon’s fire and shooting at Silverlake Park, including first responders from AMR and from the Tucson Fire Department.
The mayor added: “It was a horrific and senseless act of violence.”
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