Off-duty correctional officer in critical condition after shooting

A 52-year-old correctional officer was in critical condition Friday after he was shot at a gas station in Colton, officials said.

Authorities are investigating whether the longtime officer, who was off-duty at the time of the shooting, was targeted because of his job, said Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The man’s name or facility where he worked were not released.

Officials said the officer was fueling his automobile at a Shell station in the 2700 block of Iowa Avenue around 8:30 p.m. Thursday when two men pulled up in a silver Dodge Durango SUV and asked for directions, KTLA reported.

At some point, someone in the SUV shot the officer, who fell to the ground. The assailants fled.

The silver Durango was spotted about an hour after the shooting not far away, the television station reported. Police moved in when the SUV pulled up at a Burger King drive-through. One man was arrested on the spot; the other fled on foot and was caught a block away.

A handgun was recovered from the SUV, authorities said.

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