Gunman, police dog die in shootout with LA County deputies

GARDENA, Calif. (AP) — A man who fired on Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and killed a police dog was shot and killed after a 33-hour standoff, authorities said.

The 63-year-old man died at the scene Thursday in an apartment in the Los Angeles suburb of Gardena. His name wasn’t immediately released.

Gardena police Sgt. Brian Messina said the man barricaded himself in his apartment Wednesday morning after he shot at a neighbor sitting in a car during a dispute, the Southern California News Group reported.

One bullet hit the car door but the neighbor wasn’t injured.

After a day of failed attempts to negotiate with the man by phone, Gardena police asked for help from the Sheriff’s Department, authorities said.

Shortly after 5:30 p.m. Thursday, members of a SWAT team and a K9 team dog named Jack entered the apartment, where the gunman opened fire and deputies fired back, killing him, a Sheriff’s Department statement said.

Jack, who had been with the department since 2019, also died at the scene.

The dog, a Belgium Malinois imported from the Netherlands, “saved numerous lives and courageously protected members of the bureau during countless tactical operations,” Sheriff Robert Luna tweeted Friday.

“K9 Jack was a very social dog with the heart of a warrior,” Luna wrote.