St. Petersburg (Fla.) Police Officer David Crawford was fatally shot Monday evening in a residential neighborhood, prompting a massive search by six law enforcement agencies.

More than 200 law enforcement officers cordoned off the area, going door to door, knocking at homes, businesses and cheap hotels in search of Officer Crawford's killer, reports the Tampa Tribune .

The incident began when Officer David Crawford and Officer Donald J. Ziglar responded to a suspcious-person call at the 700 block of Third Avenue South at 10:34 p.m. Monday. A resident had reported a man holding a broken brick and walking in the rear yard of the resident's home, according to the agency.

After locating the man near the southwest corner of the intersection of Second Avenue South and Eighth Street South, Officer Crawford parked his cruiser, exited the vehicle and approached the man.

At 10:37 p.m., Officer Ziglar reported an exchange of gunfire and officer down to dispatch. Officer Ziglar found Officer Crawford laying on the pavement near his cruiser with multiple gunshot wounds at close range.

The suspect fled on foot, as police units converged on the scene. Schools in the area were closed for the day.

The officer had been with the force for 25 years. He is survived by a wife and a 24-year-old daughter. The duty death is the third for the agency in less than a month, following the duty deaths of Officer Jeffrey Yaslowitz and Sgt. Tom Baitinger while serving a high-risk warrant in late January.

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