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D.C. police officer dies after accidentally shooting himself with suspect’s gun

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Police near the scene (Credit: WTTG)

A police officer in Washington, D.C. has died after accidentally shooting himself while picking up a suspect’s gun, local officials say. The unidentified suspect managed to escape and remains at large.

Officers from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Robbery Suppression Unit were canvassing an area on Quarles Street, Northeast at around 5:40 p.m. on Wednesday when they saw a suspect getting out of a car.

When officers attempted to make contact, the suspect fled and ran towards I-295 southbound, where he jumped from a retaining wall, police said. The suspect was then seen placing a firearm in a storm drain before fleeing the area on the back of a motorcycle.

“During the investigation, officers went to the storm drain in an attempt to recover the firearm,” D.C. police said in a statement. “While one of the officers was attempting to retrieve the firearm was evidence, the gun discharged, striking the officer.”

The police officer, who was later identified as Investigator Wayne David, was airlifted to an area hospital where he was later pronounced dead. The suspect, who has not been identified, remained at large on early Thursday morning.

“Our hearts are heavy tonight after the tragic loss of one of our own,” D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith said in a statement. “Investigator Wayne David, a veteran MPD officer, lost his life while serving in the line of duty. There are few words to express the hurt and pain that Officer David’s family and the entire MPD is feeling right now.”

Smith added: “Investigator David was the epitome of a great officer. He was a dedicated and highly respected member of the department, and this is a tremendous loss for all of us.”

David joined the Metropolitan Police Department in December 1998 after graduating from the Police Academy. He was initially assigned to the Third District but joined the Gun Recovery Unit in 2007. In 2021, he was assigned as an investigator with the Violent Crime Suppression Division.

“A DC native and a mentor to many officers, he helped get hundreds of guns off our streets, and just a few years ago he received the MPD Ribbon of Valor,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said. “Beyond being an officer, he was a good man – and a great dad – that many people loved and looked up to.”

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