FARGO, N.D. – The first police officer to be killed in the line of duty in more than 50 years in one North Dakota city was shot multiple times by a man with a criminal history that includes interfering with police and harassing public officials, authorities said Thursday.
Officer Cody Holte, a three-year veteran of the Grand Forks Police Department, died at a hospital Wednesday after coming to the aid of two deputies trying to serve eviction papers, police said. Holte, 29, and Cpl. Patrick Torok were first on the scene after Salamah Pendleton opened fire on the deputies at an apartment in the city close to the Minnesota state line.
"If I had to pick a word … a true servant," Grand Forks Police Chief Mark Nelson said, fighting back tears. "He made everyone around him better."
Holte is the first officer to be killed on duty in Grand Forks since 1966, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page website.
One of the two sheriff's deputies, Cpl. Ron Nord, was shot in the leg and abdomen and is listed in stable condition. He and Sgt. Kelly McLean were fulfilling a judge's order to remove Pendleton and Lola Moore, 61, from the premises. Moore died from gunfire but police would not give specifics on her death.
Grand Forks prosecutors said they are working on charges against Pendleton, 41.
Associated Press
