Officer Dominic “Nick” Winum, 48, had worked for the City of Stanley Police Department since 2016, according to Police Chief Ryan Dean. Before that, Winum served as a trooper with the Virginia State Police, which also meant extended condolences
“It is with heavy hearts tonight that we must inform our community of the death of one of our own duties,” Dean announced in a Facebook post. “I know that the Stanley and Page County community keeps Nick and his family in their prayers during this most difficult and tragic time.”
In a subsequent statement on her Facebook page, Stanley police said Winum initiated a traffic stop, but before the officer could get out of his patrol car, the suspect got out of his vehicle and opened fire. The shooter, identified as 29-year-old Dakota G. Richards, fled on foot into the nearby forest.
The authorities pursued Richards and found him hiding in a barn; Richards “made a threatening move and was shot by the Page County sheriff’s deputies,” the statement said.
Virginia State Police are investigating both shootings. CNN has contacted the Stanley Police Department and Virginia State Police for comment.