Dallas was and continues to be a war zone Thursday evening as at least four officers have been shot and 11 wounded in shootings that occurred during a rally to protest police violence.
According to various accounts and video posted to social media, a number of gunshots were heard in downtown Dallas as protesters and bystanders ran for their lives.
https://twitter.com/allisongriz/status/751234755882995713
*Explicit content* Videos of protest and moment shots fired coming in. More info: https://t.co/yylsux0Vvq pic.twitter.com/QlHXn4HggZ
— Dallas Morning News (@dallasnews) July 8, 2016
Police believe that the shooting suspects shot from an elevated position and that they may have planted bombs across the city.
UPDATE: 3 officers dead in Dallas: "It appears that two snipers shot ten police officers from elevated positions." pic.twitter.com/zVz7G8S2lX
— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) July 8, 2016
#BREAKING: Our cameras captured several shots ring out during a protest in Downtown Dallas pic.twitter.com/OWOBOOI8Jg
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) July 8, 2016
UPDATE: Video shows chaotic scene after 2 officers shot during Dallas protest https://t.co/ckA8up78MXhttps://t.co/pA7GDHmnUr
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) July 8, 2016
Dallas Police also circulated this picture of a person of interest who reportedly turned himself in. Within the picture this person of interest is seen carrying a rifle. It should be noted that Texas is an open carry state.
It’s also being reported regarding the following individual that he turned his weapon over to a police officer when shots initially rang out.
From Dallas Police Chief: Person in this picture is a "person of interest." pic.twitter.com/ViKZdlWlla
— Dallas Morning News (@dallasnews) July 8, 2016
Meanwhile, an individual who was involved in a shootout with Dallas SWAT has been taken into custody.
UPDATE: Here’s the alleged video of the shooter taken by a witness named Ismael Dejesus who is staying at a hotel in downtown Dallas.
Video from Ismael Dejesus : This is the video of the shooter killing cops..This is shocking beyond words. pic.twitter.com/PrNuGYT32X
— nycphotog (@nycphotog) July 8, 2016
This also looks to be another angle of the Ismael Dejesus video shot by Michael Kevin which originally appeared on his Facebook page.
I liked a @YouTube video https://t.co/VKCLxZLX05 Multiple Officers Shot Down In Dallas, Texas – Michael Kevin Bautista (facebook live)
— derwinaugustus (@derwingamer) July 8, 2016
UPDATE: Friday morning Dallas police gave a grim update on the Thursday night shootings. As it stands right now, five officers were killed with seven wounded. Two civilians were also wounded in the carnage by what is believed to of been a lone gunman.
Reports are also surfacing that the gunman’s name was Micah Xavier Johnson a 25-year old Texas native. According to police he was killed during a standoff with police when authorities detonated a bomb as negotiations with the suspect soured.
Authorities also said that the shooting suspect told them during negotiations that he wanted to ‘kill white police officers’ and was upset with the Black Lives Matter movement. He had no known connections to any organizations or movements as well as domestic or international terrorist groups.