DES MOINES, IOWA — Republican vice presidential nominee Gov. Mike Pence is paying his respects to two slain police officers, visiting memorials for both as soon as he arrived in Iowa.

Each officer was ambushed with gunfire in separate shootings in the early morning hours of Wednesday just about two miles apart, according to the Des Moines Register.

The memorial for Des Moines police Sgt. Anthony “Tony” Beminio, 38, was a car with flowers displayed. Gov. Pence and his wife Karen, accompanied by their daughter Charlotte, shook hands with Des Moines Police chief Dana Wingert. All were visibly touched as Pence spoke to offer condolences. The Pences then shook hands with several other officers out front of the police building where the memorial sat. Mrs. Pence placed a large bouquet of white flowers on the vehicle.

After a moment of silence for the fallen officer, Gov. Pence spoke to reporters, expressing how grateful he was for the service of officers and said that “they are in our hearts and prayers.”

A memorial for Urbandale police officer Justin Martin, 24, also displayed a police vehicle covered in flowers. The Pence family spoke with officers outside the Urbandale police building. One officer said this had been Martin’s first job out of college. After a few moments the Pence family moved to pay their respects at the memorial where another bouquet of white flowers was laid on the memorial to Martin.

Pence told reporters outside the Urbandale memorial:

My family and I just arrived in Iowa and we just wanted, we just wanted to come by and express our condolences and our prayers for the loss of these two courageous officers. And just assure their families and assure their law enforcement family that Des Moines and these officers are on the hearts and in the prayers of millions of Americans. It’s times like this that we are reminded of the risks that men and women in law enforcement take every day and just before we settle in for the night, we just wanted to come by and offer a word of condolence and pay our respects for these two courageous officers. The hearts of every American are in Des Moines this night.

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