Atlanta police show support for officers wounded in ambush shooting in Midtown

article

(Atlanta Police Department)

ATLANTA - The Atlanta police officer shot while responding to a shooting at a Midtown apartment building back at the end of June is home recovering.

The Atlanta Police Department released photos of Officer Khuong Thai on Friday.

It shows the officer in much better spirits.

(Atlanta Police Department)

"We are happy to report that Officer Thai is steadily recovering from the gunshot wounds he suffered in June," a post on the City of Atlanta Police Department Facebook page reads. "He seems to be doing much better and is in good spirits."

(Atlanta Police Department)

Officer Thai’s entire unit traveled to his house to check on him and show him support this week. He was presented a $1,000 check of support from the Gold Shield Foundation. He also received plaques and other items of support from fellow officers and supervisors.

(Atlanta Police Department)

"His spirit and attitude are inspiring…he is truly our hero! We wish him continued healing and wellness," the post continued.

(Atlanta Police Department)

A suspect ambushed Officer Thai and another officer as soon as they got off the elevator at the Solace located at 710 Peachtree Street near 3rd Street NE on June 30. The officers were "immediately" met with gunfire after exiting an elevator on the eighth floor of the building. Thai was shot in the face.

(Atlanta Police Department)

The injured officer, a two-year veteran of the Atlanta Police Department, was pulled from the building by his partner and other offices arriving at the scene. A video shared with FOX 5 shows those officers stabilizing him and then carrying him to an ambulance to be rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital. Police said he suffered multiple gunshot wounds with at least one shot in the face. But he was able to speak with the chief and his partner under heavy sedation at the hospital.

Eyewitness captures moments after Atlanta officer ambushed by gunman

A dramatic video shared with FOX 5 by viewer Zack Nyein shows the moments after an Atlanta police officer was dragged from a Midtown apartment complex where he shot in what police say was an ambush. Fellow officers can be seen surrounding the two-year veteran as they work to stabilize him to be transported to the hospital.

According to Phuc Thai, Officer Thai's older brother, he, his brother, and their mother immigrated to the United States from Vietnam in 2013. Thai is a medical student and said his brother was in the U.S. Army Reserves before joining the Atlanta Police Department in 2019.