Cops kill 2 suspects outside IHOP, one deputy shot

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Authorities say a Jefferson Parish sheriff's deputy is wounded and two suspects are dead after a shooting outside an IHOP restaurant on the Westbank.

It happened around 10:30pm near the intersection of the Westbank Expressway and Terry Parkway.

Sheriff's Spokesman Glen Boyd said the deputy was rushed to University Medical Center where he underwent surgery and is now in stable condition.

One suspect was shot dead at the scene.  The other died at the hospital.

Sheriff Joe Lopinto says it appears the deputy was wounded by another officer's bullet.

It all started when narcotics officers got a tip and went to the IHOP to buy drugs from the suspect.  The sheriff says when the driver realized it was a sting, he tried to get away and backed into a deputy.  Lopinto explained that was when two detectives started shooting.  He says their bullets killed the driver and the passenger, as well as hitting a deputy on the other side of the car.

The deputy hit by the suspect's car was not hospitalized.

Here is the news release:

Sheriff Joseph Lopinto reports that the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office is investigating a deputy-involved shooting that occurred in the 100 block of the Westbank Expressway in Gretna.
At around 10:22 pm on March 27, 2019, JPSO detectives were attempting to conduct an undercover narcotics purchase in a parking lot.  As deputies arrived and exited their vehicles, the driver put his vehicle in reverse and accelerated and struck one of the detectives with his vehicle, then rammed a detective’s vehicle.  Detectives on scene fired at the driver, striking both the driver and a male passenger.  The driver died of his injuries on scene. The passenger was transported to a local hospital where he died of his injuries.
During the incident, one of the detectives was struck by gunfire. He underwent surgery at a local hospital and is now in stable condition.
This investigation is in its earliest stages. Additional information will be released as it becomes available.