NEWPORT NEWS — The police officer and the civilian ride-along with him Saturday were “ambushed” by a homicide suspect.
That’s according to police Chief Steve Drew, who gave a news briefing Monday regarding the quadruple shooting that left a woman dead and three others injured. Drew said the suspect, identified as Jerome Michael Uzzle, 34 has died of his injuries.
“This was an ambush style shooting,” Drew said, referring to how investigators said Uzzle shot the officer, Robert Stewart, and the civilian in the car with him.
Authorities set up a perimeter at the 700 block of Peninsula Drive and Uzzle came from another residence around the perimeter, approached Stewart and the civilian ride-along on the driver’s side of the vehicle and shot them, Drew said.
Another officer, Brenden Kidder, drew his service weapon, gave the suspect commands and shot Uzzle, Drew added.
Stewart and the civilian are in stable condition.
The “ambush” happened two hours after a shooting that left a woman dead in a vehicle, Drew said.
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At approximately 3:30 p.m. Saturday officers responded to the Circle K convenience store in the 100 block of Ottis Street to a shooting and found Chondra Eason with multiple gunshot wounds in a car, authorities said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Drew said witness at the scene had video footage of the scene, including a license plate which led police to suspect Uzzle, Eason’s husband.
The police chief said shell casings recovered at the first scene on Ottis Drive were consistent with the caliber recovered at the apartment complex. Authorities also recovered an additional firearm at Uzzle’s residence.
Drew said he spoke and “shed a few tears” with Eason’s and Uzzle’s mothers following the incident.
