Nashville Police Officer Lured Into Ambush

Currently, public opinion of law enforcement is fairly low. Lawmakers and celebrities' are continually using their platforms to continue to push anti-police rhetoric.

Would-be criminals and those having mental health crisis' can see this as an opportunity to lure officers into harmful situations.

911 Call Response

BREAKING: Officer Brian Sherman is being treated at Vanderbilt for gunshot wounds to his left arm. Sherman was hit while answering a call of a woman shot at 7220 Sugarloaf Dr. That call was a setup to get police to respond... pic.twitter.com/SHN1K3bzzk
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) May 5, 2021

Nashville officers responded to a 911 call a little before 6:15 in the evening. According to WKRN, Officer Brian Sherman and two other officers responded to the home on Sugarloaf Drive.

The caller had told the 911 operator that "his brother had shot his mother and gunshots were being fired inside the residence." Officers knew that they could possibly be walking into a tense sitiation.

When they arrived, they exited their vehicles and knocked on the door of the home. Right after the knock, the door was opened and shots were immediately fired at the three officers.

Negotiating

The officers did not shoot back. The shooter, 22-year-old Salman Mohamed, came out of the home on his own.

The officers tried negotiating with the Mohamed, who was still armed with the rifle. However, Mohamed did not want to be talked down or taken to jail.

He put the rifle to his head and pulled the trigger, killing himself in front of the officers.

According to Metro police spokesperson, Don Aaron, they believe that the call was just a lure to get the offices out to the home.

“We believe the person who made the 911 call is Mohamed himself. On the 911 call, you can hear him saying that he’s scared. That shots are continuing to be fired. ‘Hurry — hurry. Please get here in a hurry.'”
Don Aaron, Metro Police

Struggling

Mohamed's family shared that he had been having some mental health issues and struggling. The families attorney also said he was normally "an overachieving, gifted student."

Officer Sherman, who was shot in the left arm, was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He was treated and released. Sherman is now recovering at his home.

Investigations into why the shooting happened in the first place are underway.

Tough Situations

False calls are tough situations for law enforcement to deal with. They walk in with the information they have from 911 and quickly have to switch gears.