Two dead, one injured in federal prison shooting
Two federal employees were shot dead today at a detention centre in Florida and another was injured after a guard allegedly opened fire on FBI agents serving arrest warrants, the FBI said.
FBI agents and Justice Department investigators had gone to the centre in Tallahassee to serve warrants for the arrest of six guards when one of them shot a federal correctional institution officer, said FBI spokesman John Girgenti.
The shootings occurred when the guard attempted to exit the building, Girgenti said. He declined to comment on whether the gunman was among the dead or injured.
Tallahassee police said earlier that the gunman was in custody.
The condition of the survivor and identities of the victims were not immediately released.
“The community is safe. The institution is in lockdown status,” federal Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman Carla Wilson said.
The detention centre houses mostly men and is part of the Tallahassee Federal Correctional Institution.
A low security prison for female inmates is next to the detention centre. Together the men’s and women’s units total 1,445 inmates.
It also was not immediately clear why the six guards were being arrested. Girgenti said he did not have details about what the warrants involved.
