Sex assault suspect dead after shootout in New York's West Village

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/28/new-york-sexual-assault-suspect-dead

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A fugitive task force and a sex-assault suspect got into a shootout in New York on Monday, leaving the suspect dead and two federal marshals and a police detective wounded, authorities said.

The wounded officers were in stable condition, police commissioner William Bratton and Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters in a news conference.

"We pray everything we are hearing is true and that these officers will be OK in the long run," De Blasio said. The law enforcement officials' exact injuries were unclear.

The suspect was killed in the exchange and his weapon had been recovered, the mayor and commissioner said.

The shooting happened just after 1pm in the West Village not far from New York University when a fugitive apprehension task force tried to serve a warrant outside a smoke shop just north of a busy subway station. It was unclear if the shootout happened inside or outside the shop.

The fugitive task force seeks absconders from other states, Bratton said. The suspect was wanted in a sexual assault case, according to US Marshals Service.