ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Feb. 22 (UPI) -- A search was under way Tuesday for a man who fatally shot a St. Petersburg, Fla., police officer as he was investigating a report of a prowler, police said.
Police said officer David S. Crawford, 46, was shot multiple times Monday night but also returned fire, the St. Petersburg Times reported. Crawford, a 25-year veteran of the department, was pronounced dead at a hospital.
"It hurts," Police Chief Chuck Harmon said during a news conference at the hospital. "It stings. This killer has taken someone very precious to us, a member of our family."
Officials said at least 50 law enforcement personnel, along with Pinellas County sheriff's helicopter and canine units, were searching a downtown area of St. Petersburg for the suspect.
Chris Magner, 30, who lives near where the shooting occurred, told the Times he was watching television with his girlfriend when he heard as many as 10 shots. "We heard some gunshots, obviously from two different guns because one was way louder than the other one," Magner said.
He said he went outside and saw a number of police cars but didn't see the injured officer or the unidentified gunman.
"This city has been through hell," St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster said at the news conference. "Our hearts are broken."
The city was still coping with the deaths of officers Jeffrey A. Yaslowitz and Thomas Baitinger, who were killed Jan. 24 in a confrontation with an armed suspect, the Times said. Earlier Monday, about 280 people attended a fundraiser for the officers' families.
