Whittier police shoot at, search for suspected gunman after traffic stop
Whittier police opened fire on a man they say pointed a gun at them after fleeing a vehicle during a traffic stop.
The shooting occurred about midnight when police pulled over a car off Whittier Boulevard and Comstock Avenue, according to CBS2.
Officer John Scoggins told news outlets at the scene that when an officer pulled over the vehicle, a male passenger in the front seat got out and pointed a gun at police.
The officer fired two shots at the man out of fear for his own safety, Scoggins said. The gunman fired two shots back at police, then he and the driver disappeared into the neighborhood while police set up a perimeter to begin a door to door search, Scoggins said.
Two women in the back seat of the car were taken into custody, CBS2 reported. Sometime before 5 a.m., officers found one of the men believed to have been in the car but could not determine if he was the one with the gun.
The search for the second man was continuing as of 6 a.m., Whittier police said.
Police have shut down a stretch of Whittier Boulevard between Santa Fe Springs Road and Greenleaf Avenue.
For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna.
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