Accused Shooter: I Was Protecting My Family
Man Booked For Shooting 3 SWAT Officers Talks To FOX5
POSTED: 8:55 am PST December 30,
2008
UPDATED: 10:13 pm PST December 30,
2008
LAS VEGAS -- The man who has been booked on suspicion of shooting three Metro SWAT officers talks to FOX5.On Sunday, a SWAT team attempted to serve a high-risk narcotics search warrant in Henderson. During the incident, police said Emmanuel Dozier, 32, shot at the officers, striking each in the leg.Dozier's girlfriend, Belinda, said none of the officers identified themselves as police."They kept banging the back of the house -- everywhere," she said. "We didn't know it was the police."After hearing the banging and one of his daughters yell for help, Dozier said he took steps to protect his family."I thought it was a home invasion or someone breaking in," he said. "There was no way to tell the officers were who they said they were. There has been a rash of home invasions throughout the Valley. I was just protecting my family. I didn't mean to cause ill will."Belinda said she took Dozier's teen daughter and her infant to hide as shots began ring out."We hid in the closet," she said. "I was on the phone with police, telling them someone was breaking in."Dozier shot all three officers in the leg. They were taken to University Medical Center, where they are recovering from their injuries.In an interview with the Review-Journal, Sheriff Doug Gillespie that -- in this situation -- the officers would have verbally identified themselves and they were not undercover."They had the SWAT team serve it for a reason," Sgt. John Loretto said. "The job is dangerous, and you never know who you're going to encounter inside the place."Dozier is being held without bail on three charges of attempted murder and three charges of selling cocaine. Belinda contends there were no drugs in the house at the time of the incident.The three children in the home at the time of the incident have been turned over to Child Protective Services.Police are still investigating the incident.
Previous Stories:
- December 29, 2008: 3 SWAT Officers Recovering After Shooting
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