Orlando Cop Shot and Killed, Deputy Dies in Crash During Manhunt For Suspect

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2 Law Enforcement Officers Down In Orlando

A manhunt is underway in Orlando after police said a wanted murder suspect with a violent history shot and killed a police officer outside a Walmart before escaping the scene, armed and dangerous.

The suspect, identified as Markeith Loyd, is wanted for the murder of his pregnant ex-girlfriend. He has been arrested 20 times in Orange County since 1994, according to court records.

From The Orlando Sentinel:

Two Orlando-area law enforcement officers were killed this morning, one shot by a murder suspect who managed to get away and a second killed in a crash while officers and deputies scrambled to find him.

The first victim was an Orlando police officer, Master Sgt. Debra Clayton, who was shot and killed on Princeton Street as she tried to detain the suspect.

Orlando Police Chief John Mina called Clayton, a mother of two, “a hero. She gave her life for the community she loves.”

It resulted in a huge manhunt for the suspect, Markeith Loyd, 43, who was wanted, accused of murdering his pregnant girlfriend.

Shortly before noon, about four hours after the shooting, a SWAT team was at an apartment complex off Cinderlane Parkway with rifles out while a law enforcement helicopter circled overhead…

…The second law enforcement death today was an Orange County motorcycle deputy who was part of the effort to capture the suspect, said Sheriff Jerry Demings.

“We’re sad on this day for many reasons,” Demings said at a morning news conference at Orlando Regional Medical Center.

Both officers were taken and pronounced dead there.

 

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