Christopher BergMooresville, NC – Mooresville Police Department K9 Officer Jordan Sheldon, 32, was murdered in the line of duty Saturday night while conducting a traffic stop.
The shooting happened just after 10 p.m. on West Plaza Drive, according to Mooresville PD.
Officer Sheldon stopped 28-year-old Michael Aldana in what the department called a “routine traffic stop,” according to The Charlotte Observer.
Shortly after making the stop, Aldana shot Officer Sheldon. Officer Sheldon’s K9 partner was with him at the time he was shot, but was not wounded.
After the shooting, Aldana fled to a nearby apartment complex. Police found him dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Officer Sheldon was transported to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
Aldana was known to police, but didn’t have a violent history, according to CNN. The motive for the attack is still under investigation.
The officer was wearing a body camera at the time of the attack, which is being reviewed as part of the investigation.
“We’re angry. We’re hurt. We’re sad,” Mooresville Police Chief Damon Williams told reporters. “You can’t prepare for what we’re experiencing emotionally.”
Officer Sheldon was not married, but he was in a relationship, according to The Charlotte Observer. He leaves behind his friends and family.
“They’re going to need to know that you as a community care about how they’re feeling and what they’re feeling,” Chief Williams said. “We’re going to show everybody we are Mooresville.”
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Mooresville Police Department K9 Officer Sheldon, both blood and blue. Thank you for your service.
Officer Jordan Sheldon, your life mattered.