- 2 people shot, including Warren County sheriff's deputy
- Deputy Katie Barnes has since been released from hospital
- Suspect Mohammad Abdu Laghaoui remains in jail
UPDATE @ 5:25 p.m. (July 1):
Warren County Prosecutor David P. Fornshell announced this evening that he will hold a news conference on Tuesday morning to discuss developments in the Mohammed Abdou Laghaoui case.
UPDATE June 11
The Warren County Sheriff’s Office released a statement today warning residents in the Landen area to be on the lookout for an assault rifle that investigators believe was discarded after a deputy and another person was shot Thursday night.
Dive teams were used to search for the AK 47-style rifle in Landen Lake, but without success. The sheriff’s office is advising the weapon may be loaded and may have been thrown into “a flower bed or wooded area.”
“We are asking residents to check around their residences and unlocked sheds to see if the suspect discarded the item there,” the sheriff’s office release reads.
If you find the gun, call the sheriff’s office at (513) 695-1289.
FULL REPORT
A 19-year-old Warren County man was in the county Jail Friday, after a lengthy manhunt following a domestic dispute during which he wounded his father and a sheriff’s deputy, according to authorities.
Deputy Katie Barnes was resting at home after her release from University Hospital in Cincinnati following treatment for a gunshot wound in the lower abdomen, Sheriff Larry Sims said during a press conference this morning.
Authorities were unsure of the condition of the father of Mohammed Abdu Laghaoui, 19. The father was allegedly shot in the hand during the dispute Thursday night outside an apartment in the Landen area of Deerfield Twp. in Warren County.
Laghaoui is charged with two counts of attempted murder and two counts of felonious assault for wounding the deputy and his father as well as shooting at a neighbor who went outside after hearing what he thought were firecrackers going off outside an apartment building on 8525 Jonathan Lane.
Sims alluded to the death of Deputy Brian Dulle — killed attempting to stop a suspect in 2011 — in responding to questions about his reaction to reports a deputy had been wounded Thursday night.
“It’s gut-wrenching for everybody in this room,” Sims said, referring to deputies lining the room where the press conference was held.
RELATED: Who is Warren County sheriff’s deputy Katie Barnes?
After wounding Barnes and the father and firing at the neighbor, Laghaoui ran from the scene, triggering a manhunt that prompted authorities to close roads and order residents to stay inside with their doors locked.
“A lot of people were trapped out of their homes for hours,” Sims said.
Laghaoui was arrested “without incident” after returning to the apartment about 4:30 a.m., Sims said.
Sims said it was “not unusual” for deputies to respond without waiting for back-up as Barnes did Thursday night, unaware Laghaoui was armed, much less carrying a loaded AK-47.
Laghaoui allegedly fired at least six shots, Barnes four, according to Sims. An internal investigation was ongoing, but Sims said “we are confident she did everything appropriate.”
Barnes spent almost 40 minutes earlier in the evening speaking to two individuals about domestic violence charges.
Fifty-nine minutes later, the sheriff’s office was dispatched to the same area. Barnes arrived to the scene within six minutes of the call, intentionally parking strategically to approach the apartment complex without being seen right away.
Laghaoui, though, was at the top of the stairs and immediately opened fire. Barnes was struck by a bullet in the lower abdomen.
Within a minute, she called for help, reeling from shots fired at her and returning fire, Sims said.
Sims said Laghaoui chased Barnes and continued to fire shots at her. Barnes was able to crawl over a sound barrier to get to safety.
This was Barnes’ first time firing a weapon in line of duty. Sims says he is confident Barnes, a Mason High School graduate, will recover from this.
“She’s a very athletic young lady, and some of that was a benefit for her to get away from this individual with an assault rifle,” Sims said. “She stayed very strong.”
Laghaoui returned to the apartment, where he fired shots through the apartment door and struck his father in the hand. The father’s condition is unknown, Sims said. He may need surgery, Sims said. Laghaoui’s brother also was present during the incident.
Laghaoui returned to the apartment around 4:30 a.m. this morning, without knowledge that authorities were there. He was taken into custody without incident.
Barnes will be off pending her well-being, not the investigation, Sims said.
“The good news out of this is we came out a winner,” Sims said. “Deputy Barnes came out a winner.”
Barnes was immediately transported to University Hospital in Cincinnati, and released between 2:30 a.m. and 3 a.m. this morning.
Sims said investigators are working to recover Laghaoui’s AK-47.
Warren County deputies with the Deerfield Twp. post responded to a domestic incident around 9:45 p.m. Thursday.
“I’ve been shot,” Barnes said while responding to the call, according to the emergency dispatch traffic. “Send multiple units. I’ve got a suspect out with a gun. He saw my cruiser.”
Barnes — even after being shot — continued trying to locate the suspect, according to the emergency dispatch traffic.
“Suspect’s out firing shots in the neighborhood,” Barnes said.
There were more than 50 cruisers, several K-9s and helicopters in the area searching for the suspect. Many people were stranded for hours at area restaurants and businesses, particularly along Montgomery Road.
Barnes has been with the Warren County Sheriff’s Office for seven and a half years.
According to Lauren Boettcher, spokeswoman for Lakota School officials in Butler County, Laghaoui did attend Lakota East High School through the 2012-2013 school year.
“Our records indicate that he transferred to an online school after that. Before East, he attended Hopewell Elementary, Union Elementary and Hopewell Junior School,” Boettcher said.
Boettcher said Lakota had no information as to which online school Laghaoui attended after leaving Lakota East and had no further info on any school activities he may have been involved in during his attendance of Lakota schools.