Onondaga County Sheriff Eugene Conway is urging people to come forward to help find the people involved in a shootout with one of his deputies that left one suspect injured.

According to officials, the incident happened around 11 p.m. Thursday when a plain-dressed detective was conducting surveillance on North Salina Street and saw someone thrown out of an SUV.

The detective called for help and then followed the vehicle. When they reached the corner of Commonwealth Avenue and Carbon Street in Syracuse, the suspects stopped their car, got out, and started shooting at the officer.

The detective took cover and returned fire before the suspects got back in their vehicle and took off.

The sheriff is calling it an attempted murder of his deputy.

"Well, let me state this first: It was an entirely unprovoked incident. I'll use the word 'ambush' because I think it's entirely appropriate. And when the facts do come out, I'm quite sure everyone will agre, this was an ambush," said Conway.

Additional units eventually found the SUV on Lodi Street with one suspect inside, unconscious with a gunshot wound. He was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. The deputy was not hurt.

Conway believes there were two or more suspects inside who are still at large. Authorities are continuing to search for the other people who were in that SUV.

The deputy did not have a body camera, and he was in an unmarked vehicle without a dashboard cam.

Anyone with information about this can call the Criminal Investigations Division at 315-435-3081.

This story has been amended. A previous version referred to the detective as a member of Syracuse Police.