Officer killed in Gila River Indian Community shooting

A Gila River police officer died Saturday morning while responding to a disturbance at a home in Santan, authorities said.

Joshua Briese, who had been with the department for less than a year and was on field training, was killed. Another officer was struck by gunfire along with four people who were at the scene where multiple gunshots were fired, according to officials.

Gila River Public Safety Dispatch received an emergency call for service about 2 a.m. June 1 regarding a disturbance at a home in Santan, District 4, of the Gila River Indian Community.

Gila River Police Department officers responded.

“As the responding officers worked to address the disturbance, which involved a large crowd, multiple gunshots were fired. Two GRPD officers were struck by gunfire, as were four individuals at the scene,” a department Facebook post stated.

All of the injured were taken to hospitals. Briese died, and the second injured officer remains in serious but stable condition, according to the post.

Another person died, and all of the injured are being treated at area hospitals.

“Our hearts and prayers are with these police officers, their families and everyone impacted by this tragic incident,” the department stated on Facebook.

The Gila River Police Department is working with the FBI to conduct a joint investigation  of "a large scene,"  FBI Phoenix spokesman Kevin Smith said in an email.

Arriving officers “found a large crowd, where multiple gunshots were fired,” a  police statement said, and “two officers were struck by gunfire along with four people.”

Officials did not immediately say how many police officers and other people were at the home at the time of the shooting, what may have prompted the gunfire, whether police officers fired shots, or whether anyone was arrested.

“Nothing cuts deeper than a life cut short," tribal Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis said in a statement that mourned “our fallen and injured police officers and every community member touched by such tragic violence.”

“We are coordinating closely with law enforcement to make sure we have a comprehensive understanding of what happened here,” Lewis' statement said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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