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Police collect evidence after Milwaukee officer fatally shot

Officers gathered together in a circle near 12th and Dakota after they learned one of their fellow officers was killed in the line of duty.
Posted at 10:07 AM, Feb 07, 2019
and last updated 2019-02-07 11:07:46-05

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Police are collecting evidence at a Milwaukee home where a police officer was fatally shot while serving a warrant.

Officers have cordoned off part of the residential neighborhood where 35-year-old Officer Matthew Rittner was killed Wednesday.

The 17-year police veteran was shot as members of Milwaukee's Tactical Enforcement Unit served a search warrant on someone suspected of illegally selling firearms and drugs. Investigators say a 26-year-old suspect fired several rounds. He later was arrested.

Police Chief Alfonso Morales says investigators hope to wrap up their work at the scene Thursday. Rittner's autopsy also is expected to be completed Thursday.

Ritter is the third Milwaukee police officer killed on the job in the last eight months. The department had previously gone more than two decades without a line-of-duty death.