Federal agent shot in Pittsburgh neighborhood during drug trafficking investigation

PITTSBURGH — An ATF special agent was shot Thursday morning during a multi-agency operation in Pittsburgh’s Uptown neighborhood, officials said.

A suspect in the shooting is in federal custody.

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The special agent was treated for his injuries at the scene by ATF medics, officials said. He is now receiving medical care.

Emergency activity in the area was first reported shortly before 6:30 a.m. A SWAT team, Pittsburgh police and an ambulance were spotted in the area of Marion Street.

Federal investigators said it happened during an investigation into drug trafficking by the “11 Hunnit” street gang that had operated in the Hill District.

ATF released the following statement:

“Our jobs as ATF Special Agents are inherently dangerous. We understand the risks we take every day as we perform our law enforcement duties,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge John Schmidt, ATF Philadelphia Field Division. “It is never a good day when one of our own is injured in the line of duty; however, I am grateful to report our Special Agent is in stable condition. We train for these types of situations and that training paid off today. In our efforts to conduct operations as safely as possible, we have medics on our Special Response Teams for instances just like today – our highly trained medics were able to quickly provide medical care to our Special Agent and helped insure the best outcome possible in this instance.”

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