Police officer killed and four wounded by sniper

A POLICE officer was killed and four officers were shot yesterday after a gunman opened fire in Colorado, US.

Officials confirmed seven people, including five officers, were shot while responding to an emergency call yesterday.

The gunfire broke out as Sheriff’s deputies responded to reports of a “domestic disturbance” at a residential complex south of Denver.

Douglas County officers said one of the wounded deputies had died from their injuries.

The suspect was also shot and is believed to be dead, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said.

Four other deputies and two civilians were also shot by the suspect, who was “no longer a threat”, the sheriff’s office said.

Their injuries were last night not believed to be life-threatening.

The shooting broke out at the Copper Canyon Apartments – a landscaped residential area in Douglas County, about 16 miles from Denver, around 6am local time.

County officials set up an emergency shelter and a “code red” warning was issued advising local people to avoid windows and stay away from exterior walls.

Littleton Adventist Hospital was treating three victims, according to a hospital spokeswoman, who declined to describe their conditions.

One unidentified deputy sheriff was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree received three patients with non-life threatening injuries.

The apartment complex, in Highlands Ranch, an affluent suburban community in the county, is described on its website as “one of the friendliest apartments” in the area.