7/23/2014
At least two police officers have been shot during a La Joya shootout, and the suspect is presumed to be dead.
The shots were first fired in La Joya before 5 p.m. Tuesday near Leo Avenue and 9th Street.
Mission police told Action 4 News that one of the officers is in currently in stable condition, while the other unidentified officer is in critical condition.
One officer was shot in the arm, while the other was shot in both of his legs.
Both unidentified officers are in surgery and expected to be fine due to those who came to their rescue all while underfire.
Authorities reported two Edinburg police were conducting surveillance on a wanted suspect when they came under fire.
Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office reported that the suspect barricaded himself inside the home.
Investigators told Action 4 News the suspect is wanted Texas Syndicate member Joaquin Cibrian.
Negotiators attempted to make contact with the suspect who said he would surrender, but when he opened the door he began firing at the officers.
They attempted to contact him again when the suspect reportedly said, “he’d surrender and then fired again.”
The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Department presumes he is dead.
Authorities believe there may be explosives in the home the suspect was in.
Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra told Action 4 News, “at the time we decided he was not going to give up so we deployed an armored vehicle and rammed the front door and ejected tear gas and he came out firing multiple rounds.”
The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Department told Action 4 News since they fired shots; the case will go to the Texas Rangers for further investigating.
Edinburg police believe Cibrian killed Gerardo Omar Melendez-Verdin and left his body to rot inside a home.
The Palmview Police Department told Action 4 News that they sent additional officers for back up.
Multiple law enforcement agencies are at the scene.
Residents will soon be allowed inside their home, but for now they are maintain a two-block radius
Action 4 News will provide updates as they become available.
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