James Capoot, 43, a Vallejo police officer, was shot to death, when he was chasing two bank robbery suspects on Thursday afternoon.

Capoot took the action after he received reports of a bank robbery at the Bank of America on Springs Road at around 1:30 p.m., according to police.

The suspects are described as black males wearing Halloween masks during the robbery, the Vallejo Times Herald reported.

The officer drove his cruiser to chased the suspect vehicle - a silver sport utility vehicle (SUV) for 3 to 4 miles. Then he forced the SUV to spin out of control in the 100 block of Janice Street , Vallejo police Sgt. Jeff Bassett said.

When the suspect got out of the vehicle, the officer chased them on foot until they ran into a residential neighborhood, Bassett continued.

Other officers, who followed Capoot, heard several shots fired. Then Capoot was found wounded in a backyard.

Although Capoot was sent to a hospital quickly, he was pronounced dead almost an hour after the shooting at a hospital. The officer even didn't discharge his weapon, Bassett said.

Even though it's not clear whether the suspects shot Capoot, one unidentified suspect was taken into custody. And another suspect is still at large, according to the police.

Capoot had served in the Vallejo Police Department for 19 years. His loyal work had earned him two medals of courage, two life-saving medals and other departmental commendations.

As a married father of three daughters, he also volunteered to coach the girls' basketball team at Vallejo High School, served as a motorcycle officer etc., according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Officer Capoot made the ultimate sacrifice today to protect the community he served for almost two decades, Gov. Jerry Brown said. His bravery, commitment and selfless service will not be forgotten.

He was a guy who was loved by everybody, Bassett told a news conference Thursday night. There is nobody at the police department who is not deeply affected by this.

According to seattlepi.com, people paid tribute to the officer, leaving flowers and candles at a makeshift memorial outside the front doors of the police department's headquarters on Thursday night.

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