LAS VEGAS, Nev. (KTNV) — Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officer was killed in the line of duty Thursday morning while responding to a domestic disturbance call, authorities said.
Officer Truong Thai was among two officers dispatched to an area near UNLV.
When the officers made contact with the armed suspect inside a vehicle, Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said the suspect shot at them and the officers returned fire.
Thai was shot in the torso and critically injured. He was transported to a nearby hospital, where he died with his ex-wife and daughter by his side, Lombardo said.
"This incident illustrates the danger our officers face every day just putting on the uniform and doing their job," Lombardo said.
A civilian was also struck by gunfire during the shootout and was taken to an area hospital for treatment, Lombardo said.
The suspect, identified as 24-year-old Tyson Hampton, fled the area after the shooting. He was apprehended in the area of Desert Inn Road and Eastern Avenue with the help of a K-9 unit, Lombardo said. Hampton sustained minor injuries during his arrest, he added.
Thai, 49, worked as an LVMPD officer for more than two decades, beginning his career in 1999. He was assigned to the South Central Area Command, Lombardo said.
"Clark County joins with the entire community in mourning the death of Officer Truong Thai, following his tragic death in the line of duty while serving and protecting others. Our hearts are with his family, friends, and the entire LVMPD force," a county spokesperson wrote Thursday.
"Our community and the LVMPD family has suffered a tragic loss of life in the line of duty," Clark County Commissioner Michael Naft (District A) wrote on Twitter. "I'm devastated for their loved ones, thinking of the men and women of South Central Area Command, and mourning alongside all southern Nevadas. May his memory be a blessing."
This story was originally reported on ktnv.com.
