Fugitive wanted in Orlando officer’s fatal shooting captured

ORLANDO, Fla. – A suspect in the fatal shooting of an Orlando police officer was captured Tuesday after a weeklong manhunt, authorities said.

The Orlando Police Department tweeted Tuesday night that 41-year-old Markeith Loyd was in custody, ending a manhunt that began with the Jan. 9 fatal shooting of Lt. Debra Clayton outside a Wal-Mart store.

Local television stations showed Loyd had a bloodied face when a half-dozen officers and deputies took him into police headquarters.

READ MORE: Police hunt for suspect after Orlando cop fatally shot outside a Walmart

Orlando Police Chief John Mina tweeted, “Captured and wearing Lt. Debra Clayton’s handcuffs.”

Before Clayton’s shooting, authorities had sought Loyd for questioning in the killing of his pregnant ex-girlfriend last month.

Police arrested a former supervisor at the fried chicken restaurant where Loyd worked, an ex-girlfriend and a niece last Tuesday and Wednesday on charges of helping him in the weeks after Loyd’s ex-girlfriend was fatally shot.

WATCH: Suspected gunman in fatal Florida cop shooting captured

1:20 Suspected gunman in fatal Florida cop shooting captured

While at the Wal-Mart store, Clayton was tipped off that Loyd was in the area. She approached him in the parking lot and he filed multiple shots at her. She was wearing body armour, but was hit multiple times, Orlando Police Chief John Mina said.

Investigators found clothing belonging to Loyd that suggested Clayton returned fire after she was shot but that a bulletproof vest protected the suspect.

A deputy then spotted Loyd fleeing in a vehicle and pursued him into a nearby apartment complex, where the suspect fired again, striking the deputy’s SUV twice but missing the deputy, the sheriff’s office said.

Loyd then carjacked another vehicle and fled, abandoning the second vehicle nearby another apartment complex, which was the focus of the manhunt initially, the sheriff’s office said.

A second law enforcement officer, Orange County Sheriff’s Deputy First Class Norman Lewis, was killed in a motorcycle crash after joining the massive manhunt.

Hundreds of officers and deputies had been searching for Loyd, and a $100,000 reward was being offered for information that leads to his arrest.

The U.S. Marshals Service had added Loyd to its list of most wanted fugitives Tuesday and added $25,000 to the reward offer.

Clayton, 42, was a “committed” officer and “a hero” who gave her life to the community she loves, her chief said. She was married and had a college-aged son. She also grew up in the Orlando area, and enjoyed mentoring young people.

“She was always the first to step up and help kids,” the chief said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "She was always the first to step up and help kids," the chief said.

A 17-year veteran of the force, Clayton supervised a patrol division in the neighbourhood where she was shot, and previously worked in investigations and as a school resource officer, Deputy Chief Orlando Rolon said.

“She made a point, even outside her working hours, to do things for youth and do things for the community,” Rolon said.