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Teen arrested for shooting at public safety troopers in Phoenix; second suspect wanted

Posted at 9:11 AM, Sep 18, 2020
and last updated 2020-09-18 11:11:47-04

PHOENIX, Ariz. -- A 17-year-old is in custody after reportedly firing a rifle at Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers Thursday morning in Phoenix, and authorities are searching for a second suspect in connection with the incident.

According to DPS Captain Jesse Galvez, on Thursday morning, two uniformed troopers were in their vehicle near 35th Avenue and Roosevelt Street when suspects in a vehicle passed and stopped nearby.

The driver honked the horn as the teen got out and started firing an assault rifle, according to DPS.

The troopers were able to exit their vehicle and return fire. At that point, the driver reportedly sped off, leaving the teen behind. He was then taken into custody.

No DPS troopers were shot during the incident.

Authorities are still looking for the second suspect, who was in a four-door silver 2008-2013 Infiniti model G-37 vehicle with custom wheels and a temporary license plate. Anybody with information is urged to contact police. A description of the suspect wanted has not been released.

A Blue Alert connected to the shooting was issued around 12:30 p.m. The purpose of the Blue Alert is to notify the public "following a violent attack upon a law enforcement officer."

"The goal of the Blue Alert is to protect the public and officers through efficient information dissemination and communication that results in quick and safe apprehension of suspect(s) when such attacks occur," according to the DPS website.

This story was originally published by staff at KNXV.