It was a week before Christmas in 2022, when Saint Paul, Minnesota, police officer Ching Vang and his partner Officer Justina Hser set off on their regular patrol of the city.
Natalie Morales | “48 Hours” contributor : The overnight hours, it’s December 16th, 2022. What time do you get that call?
Officer Ching Vang : On that night, the call came in around 2:50.
Officer Ching Vang : … dispatcher stated that a female was shot in the head. … my partner and I, we went lights and sirens heading towards that call.
Natalie Morales : And is it … all units in the vicinity called in at that time?
Officer Ching Vang : Yes. … pretty much, every unit hop on that call to come and assist.
Within minutes Vang, Hser, and several other officers — body cameras rolling — arrived at the location, a residential apartment building. Matthew Ecker , the man who had placed the 911 call, let them in and directed them to an apartment on the second floor.
Vang was the first to enter the apartment.