UPDATE: Police on Friday night identified the two officers involved in a shootout as 10-year veteran Brent Brown and Steve Baugh.
Brown was driving a Suburban and was hit in the shoulder. His bullet-proof vest stopped the round, and he was treated and released. Baugh, who was riding in the front seat and in full uniform, was shot in the face. He was transported by EMS and is in stable condition, according to a press release from the Indiana State Police, which is assisting in the investigation.
EARLIER:
Two Muncie police officers were shot today while conducting a sting operation to recover stolen property in the Village about three blocks from campus.
A suspect in the incident was fatally wounded, but authorities declined to release information on the conditions of the two officers.
The university released a public safety notice about the incident an hour after the 2 p.m. shooting. Because it was over quickly and not a threat to the campus, no emergency notification was necessary, Ball State Spokesman Tony Proudfoot said.
"In this case, the incident occurred over a short timeframe, was contained for its duration, and the suspect was in custody immediately after the situation," said the release from Proudfoot. "There was no threat to campus that could have been addressed by emergency alerts because the incident was over as quickly as it began."
Police were trying to buy back stolen property at the Marathon station on the corner of University Avenue and Dill Street when the suspect began firing, MPD deputy chief Mark Vollmar said.
The suspect was also wounded in the exchange of gunfire and pronounced dead later in the afternoon by Delaware County Coroner Scott Hahn.
Students have reported that some classrooms on campus were put on lockdown, but school spokesman Marc Ransford said around 3 p.m. that the campus was not locked down.
Witnesses say they heard between eight and 14 gunshots, but Vollmar said the exact number was not immediately known. Shell casings were found in the Ball State Federal Credit Union parking lot across the street.
Witness Eric Clark said he was on his computer in his apartment in the Village at Martin Street when he heard six gunshots. He said he looked outside and saw three squad cars surrounding the suspect's white Chevy Suburban and heard police yelling for the suspect to get on the ground.
"I started screaming like, ‘Hell no!'" he said. "I was just thinking this is not real."
Crowds gathered outside of Be Here Now, Dill Street Bar and Grill and the credit union. Crime scene tape surrounded the gas station, blocking off University Avenue between Dill and Dick streets.
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