Suspect in Auburn, Mass., shooting of police officer killed in shootout

OXFORD, Mass., May 23 (UPI) -- The suspect in the shooting death of an Auburn, Mass., police officer was killed in a shootout with police that left another officer injured.

Jorge Zambrano, 35, suspected of shooting Officer Ronald Tarentino during a traffic stop Sunday morning, was found in an Oxford, Mass., duplex apartment building later in the day after an extensive manhunt throughout central Massachusetts. After a search of the building, in which investigators discovered a passage leading from one unit to another, they found Zambrano. He burst from a bedroom closet, firing at police, who returned fire and shot him.

Zambrano, who police said has an extensive criminal background, which included drug distribution, was killed. An unidentified Massachusetts State Police officer was struck in the shoulder during the hail of gunfire, but was expected to undergo surgery and survive.

Sandra Belanger, who lives nearby, said police attempted to end the confrontation with Zambrano peacefully.

"They tried so hard to get him to come out of the building. You could tell they didn't want anybody else to get hurt," she told WCVB-TV, Boston.

Tarantino, 42, was shot multiple times during the traffic stop early Sunday before the suspect drove away.