Officer Shot in His Unmarked Car
The Associated Press
Reading, Penn. (AP) -- A police officer on the hunt for a murder suspect was fatally wounded late Friday night when a gunman opened fire on the officer’s unmarked car.
Officer Michael Wise, 32, was shot in the head just before midnight when a man being watched by three plainclothes officers abruptly pulled a gun and began firing, police said.
Two other officers in the car returned fire and escaped unhurt. One rushed Wise to the hospital, the second gave chase to the shooter, who fled on foot, police said.
Reading Police Chief Charles Broad said a suspect was captured and was being questioned Saturday morning. The man had not been charged and police did not immediately release his name.
Investigators were trying to determine whether the shooter was the same person responsible for another fatal shooting in Reading about two hours earlier, as well as two other nonfatal shootings the same evening.
“These shootings happened in three separate locations,” Broad said. “We can’t say with any confidence now whether they were related or not.”
Wise was airlifted to Lehigh Valley Hospital, where he died at around 2:40 a.m., police said.
Broad said Wise joined the police department two years ago and had a wife and young daughter.
The officer and two partners were in the northwest section of Reading looking for a vehicle that had been reported seen near one of the earlier shootings when they spotted a car that seemed to match the description.
Broad said the officers, who weren’t in uniform but were wearing clothing with police logos, pulled over near the car and waited for backup to arrive. As they watched, a person exited the car, walked across the street to talk to people standing on a corner.
The man then crossed back to the car, took cover behind it and abruptly began firing, police said.