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LOS ANGELES, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- A suspect was caught 12 hours after two police officers were shot dead and one more was wounded Saturday afternoon in Palm Springs, southern California, local police said.
The suspect, identified as John Felix, a Palm Springs resident, surrendered to special police SWAT members after a lengthy standoff and was taken into custody, Riverside County Sheriff's Department said.
The 26-year-old suspect suffered non-life threatening injuries and was treated at a local hospital after the incident, during which the officers from the Palm Springs Police Department were responding to a report of a family disturbance.
According to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, officers arrived at the door of a house and attempted to have a male step out of the residence, but the officers were met with gunfire through the closed front door.
During the exchange of gunfire, three officers were injured and transported to a local hospital, but two of them were announced deceased at the hospital. The third officer is recovering from non-life threatening injuries.
"Today Palm Springs lost two brave officers. They go out every day and put their boots on the ground for everybody in this community," Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes said at a news conference.
The slain officers were Jose Gilbert Vega, a 35-year department veteran, and 27-year-old Lesley Zerebny, a year-and-a-half department novice who had recently given birth.
Dozens of law enforcement personnel from multiple agencies responded to the scene, according to the City News Service. Palm Springs, a city of more than 46,000 residents, is about 170 km east of Los Angeles.
This is the latest case of multiple police officers being shot in the United States.
