By Graham Lee Brewer
The Oklahoman
LAWTON, Okla. — A correctional officer at the Lawton Correctional Facility was shot several times while driving to work Wednesday morning, according to the GEO Group, the private prison company that owns the facility.
“She is currently in stable condition and her next of kin have been notified,” GEO spokesman Pabo Paez said in an emailed statement.
Paez declined to release the woman’s name or title or further information about the assault.
Lawton police are handling the shooting investigation. Deputy Chief of Police Will Hines said his officers were sent to the scene about 7 a.m.
“She pulled up to an intersection and saw a guy that she thought she recognized from a former encounter,” Hines said. Hines would not elaborate on the victim’s reference to a former encounter with the shooter.
The victim rolled down her window to get a better look at the man, who was on foot.
“He started coming at her and started shooting at her,” Hines said.
Hines said the employee is sedated at the hospital and he was unable to provide further information, but expressed confidence the department would be able to find the shooter.
“We do have some ideas of who we’re looking at, but we’re not ready to identify any suspects at this time.”
In a news release Wednesday afternoon, Joe Allbaugh, director of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, confirmed the victim is a correctional officer.
“No matter if a correctional officer is with the DOC or a private facility, they are all like family,” said Allbaugh, who was at the prison Wednesday to collect more information.
“When something happens to one, it reverberates throughout the entire department. The senseless violence that happened this morning is unconscionable. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victim and her family as she recovers. We are offering our full support to them.”
The 2,600 medium- and maximum-security prison was placed on lockdown Wednesday as a precautionary measure.
The Florida-based GEO operates more than 60 correctional facilities in the United States.
Copyright 2016 The Oklahoman