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Feb 19, 2008 8:34 am US/Central
2 Officers Wounded, Suspect Killed In Shootout
Men Fire At Officers At Budget Inn In Burbank, Officers Return Fire
BURBANK, Ill. (CBS) ―
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Two police officers were wounded in a shootout at the Budget Motel in Burbank, before returning fire and leaving one suspect dead and another injured.
CBS
Two police officers in southwest suburban Burbank were hit by gunfire in a shootout overnight before returning fire and shooting the suspects, one fatally.
As CBS 2's Kristyn Hartman reports, Burbank police received a 911 call around 8:55 p.m. about a man with a gun at the Budget Inn Motel, at 8450 S. Cicero Ave. The caller reported two men who might have been in room 16 or 17, Burbank police said. A woman was also in the room with the gunman, police said.
Responding officers came to the second floor balcony and attempted to make contact with the occupants of Room 17, but people in the room fired shots at the officers, who returned fire, police said.
One officer suffered a gunshot wound to the leg and the other suffered a gunshot wound to the hand, police said. Burbank Fire Department Chief Tim Kaufmann said the officer shot in the hand was also shot twice in the chest, but was protected by a bullet-resistant vest.
Hitendra Gandhi was on the first floor of the motel at the time of the shooting, and said he did not hear the gunshots.
"When the police came, then I came to know that something happened," Gandhi said.
Other witnesses described what they saw and heard.
"I just heard a lot of gunshots," one woman said. "I don't know what kind of gun it was." She said she saw officers shoot first, but police said that was not the case.
"These people got gunned down. I don't know what happened over there," a man said. "It sounded ugly to me – terribly ugly."
The officers were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn with non-life-threatening injuries, Kaufmann said.
One suspect was dead on the scene. Kendall Virgil, of 512 W. 57th St. in Chicago, was pronounced dead at 5:05 a.m. at the Stein Institute, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office. An autopsy will be performed later Tuesday.
A miniature machine-gun and a semi-automatic handgun were recovered from the scene, Burbank police Capt. Joseph Ford said Tuesday at 7:15 a.m.
The second gunman was taken to Christ Medical Center in an unidentified condition, where he remained in police custody early Tuesday.
The unarmed woman was not injured and is being interviewed by police. She is also facing charges and is considered a suspect, Ford said.
"Everybody's a suspect until the investigation is complete," Ford said.
Police are also talking to witnesses, including the person who called 911, Ford said.
Police recovered a MasterPiece Arms 9 mm with two 30-round clips taped to each side and a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun, said Ford said, who described the MasterPiece Arms as "mini-machinegun knockoff."
The weapons were found "in close proximity to where they were shot," Ford said.
Chicago Police and several suburban police departments reported to the scene. Afterward, police showed up at Christ Hospital to support the officers who were wounded.
Illinois State Police are assisting in the investigation.
CBS 2's Kristyn Hartman and the STNG Wire contributed to this report.
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