A police officer was seriously wounded in one of three related shootings Wednesday night in Springfield, Massachusetts, police said. Seven people were arrested.
Two Massachusetts Department of Transportation workers were hurt as well, one seriously, by a car carrying three people believed to be involved in one of the shootings, according to police.
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An 18-year-old, Isak Font, is suspected of shooting the officer, who was driving to work, with an AR-15-style rifle from a Jeep around 11 p.m. on State Street near Hunter Place, Springfield police said. The wounded officer was shot in the face and the leg and was eventually taken to a Boston hospital, but is expected to survive.
That shooting followed two others in quick succession, the first on College Street at about 10:40 p.m., according to police. They said people in a Honda Civic opened fire on Springfield police detectives in the firearms investigation unit, none of whom was injured.
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Two minutes later, and a minute before the off-duty officer was shot, people in the Jeep shot at detectives who were searching for the first vehicle, Police Superintendent Lawrence Akers said. Their cruiser was hit five times but the officers were able to escape unscathed.
The people who opened fire "had no regard for life," Akers said. "That could have been anyone in those vehicles. It's not known at this time but we don't believe that they knew they were shooting at police officers. We think that they may have believed they were shooting at their rivals."
Seven people were arrested, including Font, and seven illegal weapons were recovered, according to police. It wasn't immediately clear if Font had an attorney who could speak to his arrest.
Crime scenes spanned the city, and Akers and Mayor Domenic Sarno commended the Springfield Police Department for how it handled the situation, making the arrests without opening fire. NBC affiliate WWLP reported that multiple roads in the city were closed late Wednesday, including on Interstate 91.
Everyone believed to be connected to the shootings was in custody, according to Akers. Before it was stopped, the Honda Civic hit the two transportation workers on an I-91 on-ramp.
A bystander was also hurt, but not seriously, Akers said.
The wounded officer, a seven-year veteran of the force, was not publicly identified. He was awarded the Springfield police's highest honor, the Medal of Valor, last year.
Sarno said he wished the officer "good health, a speedy recovery and encouragement," and noted that some of the people who were arrested in the incidents overnight had previously been arrested and were released following court dates.
"What message does that send to the law-abiding residents and business community, and to our brave and dedicated police officers?" Sarno said, adding, "it is a good message for those repeat and violent offenders."
