3 officers were shot as they rushed to a house near Dixon, suspect also injured, official says

DIXON – Three sheriff’s deputies were shot and killed during a response to a home in northern Illinois on Wednesday, and the suspect was also injured, authorities said.

Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle said officers responded to a report that someone was threatening to kill themselves or others at a home in the Lost Lake community near Dixon. He said the suspect was also shot. He did not provide any information about the suspect, including his name, age or where he lives.

VanVickle said a family member called police shortly after 8:30 a.m. to report threats from someone inside the home. He said negotiators tried to reach the person by phone and decided to go inside just before noon.

“Immediately after our officers entered the house, they were fired upon from inside the house,” he said.

VanVickle initially attempted to move away from reporters after making a statement without providing further details, but responded to shouted questions that all of the injured were “in good condition.”

A spokesman for Katherine Shaw Bethea Hospital in Dixon said three people were taken to the hospital’s emergency room, two of whom were treated and released. The spokesman did not provide information on the condition of the third person.

The Illinois State Police are investigating the shooting, VanVickle said. The agency did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Aerial footage from local media Wednesday afternoon showed police and private vehicles parked on the side of dirt roads throughout the neighborhood, with officers occasionally gathering in small groups, but there was little activity. At least one driveway was cordoned off with yellow police tape, and an Ogle County Sheriff’s mobile dispatch center was stationed at the end of the driveway.

The Lost Lake Homeowners Association describes the area as a “rural community” of about 700 homeowners in an unincorporated area near the cities of Dixon, Franklin Grove and Oregon, about 100 miles west of Chicago.