Off-duty officer shot, injured man and teen on Anacostia Road

A man and a teenager were shot Friday night in Southeast Washington by an off-duty police officer, according to an official.

The two were taken to an area hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries, said police spokeswoman Cmdr. Durriyyah Habeebullah in a video that was posted on D.C. police’s Twitter page. 

The officer was in full uniform, working part-time as a security guard, the Washington Post reported. At 6:42 p.m., the officer fired at a “group of males” standing in an apartment complex on the 300 block of Anacostia Road, SE, Habeebullah said.

11.8.19 Cmdr Habeebullah gives update in the Officer involved shooting in the 300 block of Anacostia Rd, SE https://t.co/gGSE8kncYa

— DC Police Department (@DCPoliceDept) November 9, 2019

One person in the group had a gun, Habeebullah said.

Though, when Habeebullah spoke to reporters at around 9:25 p.m., she said a weapon had not been recovered from the scene.

“We’re still at the beginning stages of the investigation,” she said.

Authorities are investigating the circumstances that led up to the shooting, Habeebullah said. It is unclear what made the off-duty officer draw his weapon. Police have not made the officer’s identity available to the public. 

The officer was not injured in the incident, Habeebullah said.

The shootings follow a spate of violent outbursts in the city. A man was fatally shot in Columbia Heights Monday, reported NBC Washington. In the same incident, two other people were injured, one with gunshot wounds and another who was stabbed.  

Two men, ages 19 and 23, were fatally shot in Southeast and Northeast Washington in October, according to D.C. police. The 19-year-old was identified as Alvin Barnes. The 23-year-old victim’s name was Juwaun Robert Smith.

Authorities have offered $25,000 rewards for anyone who can provide information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person, or people, responsible for killing Barnes and Smith.

In response, Habeebullah said the department is cracking down on illegal guns.

“One of the things we do is, we try to capture those persons carrying illegal firearms. That’s the biggest problem” Habeebullah said. “You can’t have a shooting without a firearm.”