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Search underway for man who killed California police officer

Authorities say they are looking for a man who shot and killed a police officer in California

This Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2018 image from a surveillance camera video and provided by the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department shows a suspect police are searching for in connection to the fatal shooting of an officer during a traffic stop in Northern California. (Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department via AP)
This Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2018 image from a surveillance camera video and provided by the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department shows a suspect police are searching for in connection to the fatal shooting of an officer during a traffic stop in Northern California. (Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department via AP)Read moreAP
    by JOCELYN GECKER, AP_pmn_1
    Published 

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Authorities were searching Wednesday for a gunman who shot and killed a police officer during a traffic stop in California.

Newman Police Officer Ronil Singh, 33, had called in a traffic stop early Wednesday and a few minutes later reported "shots fired" over his radio, the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.

Multiple agencies responded and found Singh with gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

A manhunt was underway for the killer, who was believed to be driving a gray Dodge Ram pickup when the shooting happened around 1 a.m. in Newman, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco.

Authorities released photographs of the suspect and the truck that were taken by surveillance cameras at a convenience store moments before the traffic stop, said Sgt. Tom Letras, a sheriff's spokesman.

He said authorities do not know the suspect's name.

In the photos, the heavyset suspect with short dark hair is wearing jeans, navy blue hoodie and navy T-shirt with a thick chain necklace.

Singh was a native of Fiji and had worked since July 2011 for the police department in Newman, a town of about 10,000 people.

On his Facebook page, Singh posted pictures on Christmas Eve from a deep sea fishing trip that produced a big haul of crabs and fish. The profile picture shows him smiling as he stands at a patrol car with a dog — the same photograph of the officer released by the sheriff's department.

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Associated Press journalist Amanda Lee Myers in Los Angeles contributed to this story.