New Orleans Cop Shot And Killed In Car While On Duty

A Housing Authority of New Orleans cop has been fatally shot in Central City while on patrol, it was reported yesterday. The officer has been confirmed to have been working security detail on a construction site for Guste Homes public housing complex when he received the gunshot wounds that took his life. While the identity of the officer in question has yet to be released and the family notified, HANO Police Chief Robert Anderson has confirmed the man to have been working within the housing department for roughly two years.

Anderson spoke out about the murder during a press conference saying, “It is truly a sad day for our department. We’ve never had an on-duty death in the department’s history; we know the men and women of the NOPD will work to bring this to a conclusion.”

The 45-year-old officer had been working overtime on security for the building site when shots were fired at his vehicle. It is unclear exactly what time the event occurred, although colleagues found the body around 7 a.m. at the intersection of Erato and Freret. The patrol car was found mounting a curb, with the lights still on, and the driver’s side window smashed. Further investigation into the vehicle found the car was still in drive, suggesting the shots took out the driver in motion.

It is unclear whether or not the officer had been directly targeted, or if the incident had been a random and tragic loss of life, although the area in which he was patrolling at the time had no residents and was entirely unpopulated due to the construction of property. For this reason, it is difficult to speculate for what purpose the aggressors had been present on the site.

New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Michael Harrison discussed what little information he was able to, expressing a deep concern for the officer’s family and colleagues during this difficult period.

“What we know right now is that he was fatally wounded, and it is just a sad day. We are all very touched by it and our thoughts and prayers are with the chief, his family and the officers of the housing authority.”

Investigation into the incident continues on today, with officers still working on the scene to discover exactly what occurred to result in the shots fired at the officer. New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu issued this statement regarding the attack,

“NOPD and HANO will work very closely to identify and arrest those responsible for this heinous assault. NOPD and HANO are part of the same close-knit law enforcement family that puts their lives on the line to protect and serve the people of New Orleans. Never are we more aware of the risk they face every day than we are on terrible days like this.”

The event follows several high-profile violent incidents happening around the New Orleans area over the past few weeks. Anybody with any information regarding the event is encouraged to come forward to their local police department.

[Image credit: Antwan Harris]