LORAIN, Ohio — A police officer in Lorain, Ohio, was killed in what authorities are calling an ambush attack while he was eating lunch. Two other officers were wounded in the incident.
Officers Phillip Wagner and Peter Gale had just picked up pizza for lunch and were parked side-by-side along a dead-end road in Lorain when they were attacked on Wednesday afternoon, CBS News reported.
"To my understanding, there was one male who had a vehicle parked at the dead end behind me on Riverbend Drive. When the officers arrived, he opened fire with a high-powered rifle," Elyria Police Chief James Welsh said.
Wagner, a 35-year-old Marine Corps veteran, was struck multiple times and later died from his injuries.
Gale, 51, was hit in the hand. Another officer, 47-year-old Brent Payne, responded to the shooting and was critically wounded.
Investigators say the shooter, 28-year-old Michael Parker, was killed during the exchange of gunfire.
"This was an ambush situation," Welsh said.
WATCH: 3 Ohio police officers shot in ambush
This attack is part of a growing trend of ambush attacks against police officers across the country this year.
Data gathered by the CBS News Crime Unit shows at least 50 law enforcement officers have been shot in ambush attacks so far this year — on track to exceed the 2023 total.
The numbers significantly spiked in 2023, when 138 officers were ambushed with gunfire.
When asked about patterns among shooters in these ambush attacks, Steve Fioritto, a trustee of the Ohio Fraternal Order of Police, said: "A lot of times they describe the person as a loner, but not every loner is gonna do that."
The FBI has been studying this rising trend, interviewing both shooters and victims. Their findings are part of training for local law enforcement.
"They always have got to have their head on a swivel. They've always got to have that situational awareness, and the unfortunate thing about law enforcement is that they're truly never off duty," said Kevin Harris, FBI Law Enforcement Operations Specialist.
The total number of officers shot in the line of duty has also been increasing. Compared to 2018, there was a 40% increase in 2023, with a peak high of 378 officers shot.
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