An off-duty Prince George’s County police officer was shot and killed Wednesday morning while helping a woman next door who feared her estranged husband, the department’s police chief said.
Cpl. Mujahid Ramzziddin was fatally shot by a man with a shotgun who had a history of domestic violence, Chief Henry Stawinski said.
“Mujahid stood his ground to defend the life of the individual who had come to him for help,” Stawinski said. “He saved her life by giving his own. I’m extraordinarily proud of him.”
The chief said Ramzziddin went to help the woman who came to his home shortly before 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. She was removing belongings from her home and feared her husband, Glenn Tyndell, 37, police said.
“His ex-wife and his estranged wife have both sought protection from the courts because of his violent behavior,” Stawinski said.
Tyndell came upon them with a shotgun and fired five times from about 30 yards away, police say. Ramzziddin was grievously wounded, police say, and he died. Then Tyndell grabbed his police gun and drove away.
Tyndell led police on a chase through Charles County and back into Prince George’s County before confronting officers. He was killed in a shootout with police, Stawinski said.
State Route 210, a major highway in southern Maryland connecting Prince George’s and Charles counties, was closed for several hours Wednesday near the scene of the shootout and several miles from where Ramzziddin was killed.
Ramzziddin, a married father of four, had been with the department for 14 years. He received the department’s Medal of Valor in 2006, and he worked in a special operations unit at National Harbor, police said.
“Today was not the first time he demonstrated his heroism,” Stawinski said.
The man who shot Ramzziddin had a history of domestic incidents, Stawinski said. Police later said he had three open warrants for assault, and court records list multiple civil and criminal complaints against him dating to 2010. Many of them were ultimately dismissed.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is conducting its own investigation, but Stawinski said he has reason to believe that those domestic incidents should have barred the suspect from legally owning a firearm.
Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker III, also a candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor, praised Ramzziddin for answering the call for help.
“He was home. He was off duty,” Baker said. “He didn’t have to answer that door. He didn’t have to walk out.”
Gov. Larry Hogan said he is ordering flags across the state be lowered in honor of the officer.
“He made the ultimate sacrifice,” Hogan said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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