Sources inside the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) are now admitting that the FBI had credible information before Thursday’s officer-involved shooting that a black power gang intended to target police for assassination.
BPD sources have told Baltimore’s CBS affiliate that the FBI passed on information that the Black Guerrilla Family gang had been talking about ambushing cops in the city.
Not long after the FBI disclosed its information, police ended up in a shootout with 33-year-old Dayten Ernest Harper, who fired on their cruiser with a rifle at around 9:30 on the evening of July 14.
The four officers were reportedly drawn to an apartment complex by the sound of gunfire. Upon arriving, “the officers located the suspect who was armed with an AR-15 style rifle,” according to ABC 2. The suspect opened fire, and the officers returned fire, striking the suspect with at least one round in the upper body.
BPD officials said that Harper was shooting armor-piercing bullets, but the four officers involved emerged from the gunfight without a scratch.
Investigators have not yet tied Harper to any gang.
The shooting marked the ninth time this year Baltimore police have been forced to open fire on a suspect.
Also, despite Maryland’s “assault weapons” ban, the suspect was reportedly armed with “an AR-15 style rifle.”
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.