A Los Angeles officer was shot and wounded by a gunman who walked into a police station lobby with "a complaint" and opened fire, officials said.
Two desk officers, including the one who was hit, returned fire and wounded the gunman, police said. The officer's armored vest was credited with saving his life, said LAPD Cmdr. Dennis Kato.
The violence broke out at 8:30 p.m. at the LAPD's West Traffic Division, which is housed in the Wilshire Division, in the Mid-City area of LA.
Details about why the gunman fired were not immediately available. Kato said the gunman had an unspecificied complaint.The gunman had parked in a bank parking lot and walked into the lobby.
The station has no metal detector in the lobby.
A bomb squad team checked a vehicle believed to be connected to the gunman, officials said.
The officer was taken to Cedars-Sinai Hospital with a graze wound in the shoulder, police sources said. The gunman was taken to the hospital in critical condition, Kato said.
Both directions of Venice Boulevard, between La Brea Avenue and Rimpau Boulevard, were shut down for an investigation, police said in a tweet.
Tributes, meanwhile, began pouring in for the officer on Twitter.
"Prayers to the injured Officer-LAPD," Wilshire Division officers tweeted. "This will be a lengthy investigation thru the night. Please don't attempt to drive in the area."
"Get well brother," tweeted Honolulu Police Officer Walter Gouveia. "Our prayers are with you."
A gunman ambushed LAPD detectives last year outside the Wilshire station, the scene of Monday's shooting.
