Ariz. Police Officer Is Killed 18 Years After Father Also Died in Line of Duty

An Arizona police officer was killed in the line of duty on Saturday, June 1, almost two decades after his father also died on the job. 

Gila River Police Officer Josh Briese, 24, died after responding to a call that alerted officers to a “disturbance, which involved a large crowd," where "multiple gunshots were fired,” the Gila River Police Department reported in a Facebook release. “Two GRPD officers were struck by gunfire, as were four individuals at the scene.”

All of the victims were taken to local hospitals, but Officer Briese succumbed to his injuries. “The second injured officer remains in serious but stable condition,” per the Facebook release. Alicen Apkaw, 23, also died due to her injuries, her workplace, Gila River Resorts & Casinos, confirms with PEOPLE.

The GRPD and the FBI are conducting a joint investigation; and two people involved in the shooting are in the FBI’s custody, per the bureau's site. Additionally, the Gila River Indian Community Council announced a suspension on all dances after the deadly shooting, per the organization’s Facebook page.

Briese was a member of the force for less than a year and still in Field Training at the time of his death. He worked with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office before joining the GRPD.

“Anytime you hear the loss of a police officer in the line of duty regardless of how they are killed it’s very tragic,” said Arizona Police Association Executive Director Joe Clure, per Arizona Family.

Officer Briese was the son of Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Dave Briese, who also died in the line of duty. Dave died in a car crash while responding to a scene on Nov. 3, 2006, in Montana, per Arizona Family.

Capt. Kent O’Donnell with the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office in Billings, Mont., told the out -

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let that Briese was eager to “honor his father” and had his “heart set on” joining law enforcement.

“I actually had to try and talk him out of it a few times,” said O’Donnell. “He wanted to be a police officer and just wanted to make his dad proud.”

“He’s an incredible young man. I’m sad I’m not going to get to see him grow up cause he had a very good future. And anything he put his mind to he did,” he said.

O’Donnell also shared that he is working to help bring Josh’s body back to his home state of Montana so he can be buried next to his father.

“We know they’re together, and they’re probably driving around patrolling up there in heaven together and it makes us smile a little bit knowing that they’re together again,” he said.

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In addition to Josh’s tragic death, Apkaw was also fatally injured on Saturday morning. She was taken to the local hospital but died as a result of her injuries.

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of our beloved team member, Alicen Apkaw. As an Enterprise and Community, we are devastated by this tragic loss. Let us remember Alicen for her contributions to the Enterprise but more importantly, remember the laughter and joy she brought to the Gila River Resorts & Casinos family,” Kenneth Manuel, CEO of Gila River Resorts & Casinos, shared in an statement to PEOPLE.

“We will continue to support her family during this difficult time. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends, and our team members,” he concluded.

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