Sawtelle Shooting

Suspect Fatally Shot During Battle With Officer

LOS ANGELES (CBS) ― A suspected serial robber was shot to death in West Los Angeles on Friday during a gunbattle with a police officer, authorities said.

The shooting occurred around 2:15 a.m. on Sawtelle Boulevard between West Olympic and Santa Monica boulevards when a robbery suspect stopped his car -- a light-colored sedan -- in the middle of the street and pointed a handgun at an officer who was following him, said Sgt. Craig Brown of the Los Angeles Police Department's West Los Angeles Station.

An exchange of gunfire ensued, and the man was fatally wounded, he said. The officer was not hurt.

The identity of the deceased man was not immediately released.

The incident began when an officer began following a car that matched the description of a vehicle involved in several robberies over the past few weeks in Culver City and in areas patrolled by the LAPD's Pacific and West Los Angeles stations, Brown said.