Police Officer Shot In Hawthorne, Possible Suspect In Custody

HAWTHORNE, CA — A police officer was shot in Hawthorne on Sunday morning and two people are reportedly in custody. Hawthorne police tweeted Sunday morning that an officer was "down" following a police- involved shooting at Rosecrans Avenue and Aviation Boulevard. One possible suspect has been detained.

The shooting around 9a.m. prompted a heavy law enforcement response, according to reports. Police at the scene told KCBS-TV that a suspect and girlfriend were taken into custody. One police officer had been shot in leg and was in surgery, according to the report.

The California Highway Patrol tweeted that Rosecrans Avenue near Aviation Boulevard would be blocked for an unknown period of time due to police activity. Authorities later said Northbound and Southbound lanes of Aviation Boulevard between 135th Street and the area South of Rosecrans Avenue would be blocked until further notice.

A photo posted on Twitter by user @nosicktae showed an urgent alert saying police warned of a gunman with a high-powered rifle. Reporters at the scene also said high-powered rifles were found at the scene.

The tweet stated: "If there’s anyone from the hawthorne/el segundo/manhattan beach area on here, stay away from rosecrans and aviation !! or if y’all know anyone from this area, let them know !! there’s a billion and one cop cars and helicopters all over the place so y’all won’t miss it."

At least one helicopter and many sirens were heard at the scene.

Video tweeted by user @CARNERNORMA showed multiple ambulances as well as police blocking a street in Hawthorne. Each had lights and sirens activated.

What is going on in Hawthorne pic.twitter.com/g8lgiJX74L
— NormstheQueenBee (@CARNERNORMA) April 7, 2019