Louisiana: Zachary firefighter-police officer killed in hit-and-run involving drug suspect at Walmart
A man who served as a Zachary Fire Department deputy chief and part-time Zachary police officer was killed Monday night outside the Walmart in Baker while helping in an undercover police operation when a truck containing the suspect drove over him and left the scene.
East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff Sid Gautreaux said the officer, Deputy Fire Chief Christopher Lawton, 41, was killed Monday night when he was run over by a U-haul truck in the parking lot of the Baker Walmart, officials on the scene said. He and another Zachary police officer were working undercover to investigate felony drug charges.
Gautreaux said that as the officers pulled behind the truck, the suspect and at least one other person tried to flee. One of the officers was pinned next to a shopping cart and then run over by the truck. He was pronounced dead on the scene.
Zachary Fire Department Chief of Operations Glenn Triche confirmed late Monday that the man who died was a deputy fire chief.
Gautreaux said the two suspects were taken into custody on Comite Drive not long after the incident, which began around 7:45 p.m.
"It's just tragic. A Tragic thing. Another tragic loss," Gautreaux said. "It's sad when you lose anyone like this, but he was true public servant. It's tragic when you lose anybody, but certainly someone young like that it’s hard to deal with."
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