A police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, was shot Saturday night in an incident that investigators said was not related to protests over last month's shooting of Michael Brown by an officer.

At around 9:10 p.m., an officer checking on a community center was shot in the arm, according to the Ferguson police chief, Thomas Jackson.

Jackson said in a press conference Sunday morning that the area is not where protesters had organized, and he doesn't think the two occurrences are connected.

"I don't think it is," Jackson said. "It didn't happen within the proximity of the protest area. This is a fairly secluded area. I wouldn't have any reason to think that it was linked in any way, shape or form."

However, the shooting occurred only two miles from where a black teenager, Michael Brown, was killed by white police officer Darren Wilson on Aug. 9.

When the officer spotted two men at the center, they began running as he approached them. A chase followed and as the officer got close to one of the suspect. Chief Jackson said the second man took out a gun and fired at the police officer, striking him in one arm.

Jackson added that the officer said he returned several shots but was not sure that either of the suspects were hit. Officials did not release the name of the injured officer and said they do not know the suspects' identities.

The Ferguson police chief said the St. Louis County Police Department would be leading the investigation.

Tensions in Ferguson, a northern suburb of St. Louis, between citizens and police have been strained for weeks since the outcry following Michael Brown's death.

On Thursday, Chief Jackson released a video statement apologizing to Brown's parents and the citizens of Ferguson who had been peacefully protesting yet met with strong police force.

"I want to say this to the Brown family. No one who has not experienced the loss of a child can understand what you're feeling," he said.

Brown's family, however, said in an interview Saturday with the Associated Press that the apology was not enough.

"An apology would be when Darren Wilson has handcuffs, processed and charged with murder," Michael Brown Sr. said.

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