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TWO subjects taken into custody following Arizona reservation shooting that left officer, civilian dead: FBI

Written by ABC Audio ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on June 3, 2024

(SANTAN, Ariz.) — Two subjects have been taken into custody after an officer and a civilian were killed, and another officer and three others were wounded in a shooting incident in the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona early Saturday morning, the FBI said Sunday.

Both subjects — one adult male and one juvenile male — were identified by the FBI and Gila River Police and taken into custody, authorities said. They are currently receiving medical treatment for injuries sustained during Saturday’s shooting.

On Saturday, officers responded to an incident involving a large crowd at a home in Santan, District 4 in the community around 2 a.m. local time, when multiple gunshots were fired, according to the Gila River Police Department.

Six people were shot during the incident, including Officer Joshua Briese, who succumbed to his injuries at the hospital, police said. Briese had been with the force for less than a year and was still in field training, according to the police.

An unidentified person who was shot was also pronounced dead at the scene, police said. An unidentified officer was struck and remains in serious but stable condition at the hospital, according to the police.

The remaining three civilians who were shot were also recuperating at the hospital, the police said.

The investigation into the shooting remains ongoing, with the FBI saying on Sunday that it is working on the case with the Gila River PD. There was no timeline for the investigation.

The FBI said it will hand the case over to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona for a charging decision when completed.

Braise’s father was also an officer who died in the line of duty in a car crash in 2006, according to ABC affiliate KNXV.

Gale River Indian Community Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis offered his condolences to the victims.

“I know I speak for our entire Community when I say that we grieve for our fallen and injured police officers and every Community member touched by such tragic violence. Nothing cuts deeper than a life cut short. We will pray for our officers and their families, and for every Community member, every loved one, and every family impacted by what happened this morning,” he said in a statement.