San Antonio police announce arrest in officer's killing

Detective shot Sunday in patrol car

(KSAT via CNN)

SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Police announced Monday the arrest of a man suspected of targeting a 50-year-old police officer and killing him during a traffic stop on Sunday.

Police Chief William McManus said a 31-year-old man was arrested in the death of Detective Benjamin Marconi, a 20-year veteran of the department, who was shot in his patrol car outside police headquarters.

Recommended Videos



McManus likened the shooting to the fatal ambushes of police officers in Dallas, Texas, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, earlier this year.

Last July, sniper Micah Xavier Johnson killed five officers who attempted to protect activists that were marching in Dallas following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, two black men killed by police this summer. It was the deadliest single incident for US law enforcement since September 11, 2001.

Later that month, Iraq veteran Gavin Long fatally shot three officers in Baton Rouge in an ambush attack.

Police are investigating motive in this case, including a possible connection to a Sunday morning officer-involved shooting in Dallas, McManus said.

"Unfortunately, like Dallas, like Baton Rouge, it's happened here," he said.

It wasn't the only ambush attack on Sunday: A police officer in St. Louis, Missouri, was wounded in an ambush shooting but is expected to survive.

"It's always difficult, especially in this day and age where police are being targeted across the county," McManus added.

'This type of crime cannot and will not be tolerated'

San Antonio Mayor Ivy R. Taylor condemned the shooting and called for patience while the investigation continues.

"I want to extend my deepest condolences to the family of the officer killed outside police headquarters today as well as to our entire police force," Taylor said. "This type of crime cannot and will not be tolerated. I ask for the community's thoughtfulness and patience as the investigation continues and SAPD searches for the suspect."

Police have asked the public for their help identifying a man in connection with the shooting. Initially, police described a slim black man in his 20s or 30s with a hoodie and baggie pants as a suspect. Later, police said they were seeking to identify that man in connection with the shooting but didn't call him a suspect. Additionally, police are looking for a black Mitsubishi Galant with chrome rims and tinted windows.

"Hopefully we'll solve this one real quick, and if this individual is a danger to more police or anyone else, we will try to get him off the street as soon as we can," McManus said.