A small-town police chief was gunned down Monday afternoon near Pittsburgh, and the suspect was shot and killed hours later in another exchange of gunfire with law enforcement. Brackenridge, Pa., Police Chief Justin McIntire and an officer from nearby Tarentum confronted a man who police had been seeking since he fled a traffic stop the previous night. The Tarentum officer was shot and wounded. Chief McIntire was shot in the head and died at the scene, reports the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Hundreds of officers flooded the small borough searching for the suspect who police identified as 28-year-old Aaron Lamont Swan Jr. By evening, dozens of police cruisers lined a highway, lights ablaze, to honor the chief as a procession of officers brought his body from the scene to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office.
The search for Swan began with much less urgency Sunday night when he fled a traffic stop by Pennsylvania State Police, said Allegheny County Police Superintendent Chris Kearns. Swan was wanted for allegedly violating the terms of probation in connection with a weapons violation. On Monday morning, officers spotted Swan and gave chase. Swan ditched the vehicle and took off on foot. Police ran into him again around 2 p.m. and an hourslong foot chase throughout the neighborhood ensued. Around 4:15 p.m., Chief McIntire and a Tarentum officer confronted Swan, who allegedly opened fire. Swan fled the scene in a Subaru he allegedly carjacked. Law enforcement from across Allegheny County and beyond swarmed the area along with multiple SWAT units and other specialized response units.