Following a recent ambush on two Atlanta police officers, the National Fraternal Order of Police (NFOP) union has found that attacks on police officers like these are part of a worrisome trend.

The group found that so far this year, there have been 40 ambush attacks, along with 51 officers shot and 13 killed. Ambush attacks are up 91% from last year. In 2020, there were 48 ambush attacks in total that left 60 officers wounded and 12 dead.

According to FOX News, the NFOP statistics have 150 officers shot this year in total, with 28 officers killed by gunfire.

In Atlanta on Wed., June 30, two officers responded to reports of shots fired at an apartment complex in the city’s Midtown neighborhood when they were ambushed.

According to Deputy Atlanta Police Chief Charles Hampton Jr., the officers were “immediately approached with gunfire” when the elevator door opened. The officers returned fire, and one suspect was killed at the scene.

A bystander said he heard the gunfire and witnessed a bleeding officer being carried away from the scene.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms praised the officers at a news conference with police officials.

“These officers were ambushed,” she said.

The wounded officer was in the hospital in stable condition and talking to fellow officers and family members, Atlanta Police Chief Rodney Bryant said.

Bryant said, “It is only through their training and by the grace of God that these officers did not come upon a more tragic situation.”

The NFOP warned the enforcement community against “a surge in violence against the brave men and women of law enforcement.” 

Officers have seen an increasingly hostile environment from last year as a result of protests against police brutality, such as in Portland and Chicago, and are also struggling with officer shortages and more overtime.