Gunman Kills West York Pennsylvania Police Officer in Hospital Hostage Shooting

A police officer is dead, and the gunman was shot and killed Saturday after he took staff members hostage and wounded multiple people at central Pennsylvania hospital, according to York County District Attorney Tim Barker.

Sometime between 10:35 a.m. and 11:13 a.m., Diogenes Archangel-Ortiz, 49, walked into UPMC Memorial in West Manchester Township with a bag containing a handgun and zip ties, investigators said.

After entering the hospital, Archangel-Ortiz went directly to the intensive care unit (ICU) where he took multiple UPMC staff members hostage.

West York Borough, PA, Police Officer Andrew Duarte.

Archangel-Ortiz shot three UPMC staff members: a doctor, a nurse and a custodian. The doctor was grazed by a bullet, and all three staffers are in stable condition, investigators said at a press conference in the hospital hours after the incident.

UPMC Police immediately responded to the ICU, where Archangel-Ortiz shot at officers. When police created a formation to breach the ICU, Archangel-Ortiz was holding a staff member at gunpoint and told the officers to stand down, Barker said.

Police eventually opened fire on Archangel-Ortiz, killing him. However, before Archangel-Ortiz was killed, he struck three officers in a shootout, Barker said.

An officer from Northern York County Regional Police Department and an officer from Spring Township Police Department were both struck, but are in stable condition.

Officer Andrew Duarte, 29, of the West York Police Department was fatally shot by Archangel-Ortiz.

Although an investigation into the shooting is still ongoing, Barker said officers were justified in their use of deadly force.

“This is a huge loss to our community,” Barker said. “It is absolutely clear and beyond any and all doubt that the officers were justified in taking their actions using deadly force. Quite frankly, they needed to use deadly force because by doing so they potentially saved even more lives, even as they lost one of their own.”

Barker said Archangel-Ortiz used a semi-automatic handgun in the shootings, but was unable to provide specifics on the caliber of the gun.

Investigators did not say where Archangel-Ortiz is from, but recently filed court documents show his address in York after he was charged with a traffic violation on Feb. 14.

Barker said that Archangel-Ortiz appeared to have contact with a person in the ICU in the week leading up to the shooting, but no additional information was available during Saturday’s press meeting.

It is unclear how many patients or hospital visitors were in the facility on Saturday, but Barker said Archangel-Ortiz was in a portion of the hospital where people were receiving treatment.

Pennsylvania State Police are investigating the shooting.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro spoke to the press following the incidentl, extending his thanks to all law enforcement and hospital staff and offering his condolences to Duarte’s family.

Shapiro also noted his office has been in contact with the White House, but said Pennsylvania has all the necessary resources at this time.

UPMC Memorial, a 104-bed hospital with all private patient rooms, opened in August 2019. The five-story facility provides medical care, cardiology and vascular services, chronic disease management, surgical services, and treatment for patients in need of long-term acute care, according to the company’s website.

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