East Boston Police Shooting: Injured Officers Identified

BOSTON, MA — Two Boston police officers are recovering from surgery but still in critical condition the morning after police say they were fired upon while responding to a reported domestic incident in East Boston.

Boston Police Commissioner William Evans identified the injured officers as Matt Morris, a 12-year veteran of the force, and Richard Cintolo, who has been with the BPD for 27 years. Both are with the East Boston station.

The officers were shot by a gunman wearing body armor and wielding a tactical shotgun, according to the Boston Police Department. That man is dead, and a second was arrested, according to police.

"Both officers at this time are still stable, but in critical condition," Evans told reporters in a 1 p.m. briefing. "Mayor (Marty) Walsh and myself visited the family this morning and the officers and they're recovering, which is really good news. ... It looks like they're expected to survive."

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Reports started coming in around 11 p.m. from the Orient Heights neighborhood. The Boston Police Department said the two officers were shot in the 100 block of Gladstone Street, where dozens of state and local units converged in the immediate aftermath.

According to initial reports from the Boston Police Department, officers were responding to a call for a person with a gun at 136 Gladstone St. around 10:51 p.m., when they came under fire.

In a 2:15 a.m. press conference outside Massachusetts General Hospital, Evans told reporters that the officers responded to an apparent domestic incident between two male roommates, where they found one suspect armed with what police described as a tactical shotgun, and wearing a bulletproof vest. That suspect fired on police, hitting two officers and striking one of them multiple times, Evans said. Fellow officers pulled the wounded out of the line of fire, and one officer pressed his finger into a bullet wound to stop the bleeding, he said.

Officers fired back, killing the shooter, who has since been identified as 33-year-old Kirk Figueroa.

Nine other officers were taken to Tufts Medical Center for minor injuries and for stress, police told reporters. They have all since been released.

Evans said Thursday he does not believe Figueroa planned the attack, or that officers were drawn to the scene in order to be ambushed. Domestic calls are always unpredictable, he said.

"I don't think anyone could have anticipated how quickly this situation went violent," he said.

Mayor Marty Walsh told Boston Herald radio Thursday morning the wounded officers' families were notified at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday night.

"They have come to the hospital with no idea what's going on," Walsh said. "This situation could happen any day. In Boston, it happened yesterday. Public safety is a difficult job."

As is law in officer-involved fatal shootings, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office will conduct an independent investigation to determine whether the fatality in East Boston overnight was lawful and will release those details.

"At this hour, however, our thoughts are with the injured officers, their loved ones, and their colleagues," the Suffolk County District Attorney's office said in a press release.

Despite his support for the wounded officers, DA Dan Conley later said at a police press conference, he wants the public to know his office will approach the investigation with no preconceptions, and will deliver its results to Figueroa's family and the public when it is complete.

Police departments from around the city have shared their thoughts and prayers. The Boston Police Department posted to Twitter, thanking the community, writing: "To all who have offered prayers and expressed support and concern for our officers - please know we hear you and thank you."

This story has been updated to reflect developing information provided by Boston Police and other sources. Last updated 4:13 p.m.

Photos of officers, Richard Cintolo (left) and Matthew Morris courtesy Boston Police via Twitter. Second photo by Patch staff.