A search for a man accused of shooting a Washington police officer in the face ended early yesterday in a shootout at a Howard County motel that left the suspect dead and a Prince George's County sheriff's deputy seriously wounded, authorities said.

The incident happened about 3:30 a.m. at the Econo Lodge on Washington Boulevard in North Laurel. Officers from a regional fugitive task force investigating the shooting of a police detective in Northeast Washington hours earlier forced their way into a room at the motel, said Sgt. Mario Ellis of the Prince George's County Sheriff's Office.

As the officers entered, the suspect opened fire, Ellis said. Officers returned fire and shot the suspect, who was pronounced dead at the scene.

A veteran sheriff's deputy was flown to Maryland Shock Trauma with a gunshot wound to the abdomen, Ellis said. He underwent surgery yesterday morning, Ellis said. The deputy was conscious, and the injuries were not considered life threatening, Ellis said.

A hospital spokeswoman said last night that the deputy was listed in serious condition.

Ellis did not identify the suspect or the deputy sheriff, saying relatives had not been notified.

Three other people in the motel room with the suspect were in custody, he said.

The injured sheriff's deputy serves on the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, which includes U.S. marshals and officers from the Washington Metropolitan Police Department and other area agencies.

Efforts to obtain comment from the Washington police yesterday were unsuccessful.

Members of the task force were serving a paternity support warrant in the Brookland section of Northeast Washington on Friday afternoon when a gunman opened fire, The Washington Post reported.

A bullet grazed the face of Antonio Duncan, a 37-year-old detective. The wounded officer was conscious and able to speak after the shooting, according to the Post.

Officers searching the area found the man wanted in connection with the paternity warrant and took him into custody, the Post reported. As of Friday he had not been charged in the shooting of the officer.

The man accused in the shooting also was being sought yesterday on a warrant charging him with armed robbery and attempted murder stemming from a previous incident, Ellis said.

Members of the task force learned that the shooting suspect was at the Econo Lodge in North Laurel, Ellis said.

"Our tactical unit set up to make entry in the room," Ellis said, adding that officers forced open the door. "They made entry and the suspect fired shots. ... When he fired, they returned fire."

The deputy sheriff injured in the shooting was wearing a protective vest, Ellis said.

After the shooting, investigators stood outside a second-floor room at the motel, next to a shattered window partly covered by a striped curtain.

josh.mitchell@baltsun.com