Three police officers were shot on Wednesday afternoon during an undercover investigation into fentanyl dealers in Kansas City, Kansas, according to officials.
All three officers suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Three or four suspects were also wounded and are in stable condition, Kansas City Kansas Police Chief Karl Oakman said.
An undercover team of officers had purchased fentanyl from the suspects a few days ago and were trying to make another purchase on Wednesday around 3:00 p.m.
FILE PHOTO: A patrol station for the Kansas City Kansas Police Department. (Kansas City Kansas Police Department)
"We responded today to try to buy additional fentanyl pills, at which time the deal didn't go through," Oakman told reporters in a briefing. "At that point, we were going to execute an arrest. During the execution of the arrest, individuals in the car got into a gun battle with the police officers."
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The Kansas City metropolitan area, like other cities and rural areas across the U.S., has been dealing with a spike in fentanyl overdoses in recent years.
Fentanyl pills seized last year by the Kansas City Missouri Police Department. (Kansas City Missouri Police Department)
The Kansas City Missouri Police Department put out a warning last fall after dozens of fentanyl overdoses occurred in a two-week span.
"It's causing a lot of overdoses but there's a lot of violence attached to it," Oakman said Wednesday, noting that every fentanyl search warrant they serve nets two to five guns.
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.