SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Jan. 13, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — One person was taken to a hospital in critical condition after being shot by officers during a police pursuit early Friday in Salt Lake City.
Salt Lake City police say the pursuit involved two people with felony warrants, one of whom surrendered to police after the fleeing vehicle crashed. The other fled the scene on foot and was believed to be armed when they were shot by officers, police said.
No other details about the two people taken into custody or their alleged crimes were provided Friday.
“I am thankful our officers are safe and were not harmed,” Chief Mike Brown said in a news release. “This appears to have been a very dangerous incident involving a person wanted for a violent felony.”
Salt Lake City police spokesman Brent Weisberg said the investigation began about 2:30 a.m. Friday when officers attempted to pull over a vehicle near 1300 W. Arapahoe Ave.
“The driver of the suspect car refused to stop and took off driving through our city in a reckless manner,” Weisberg said. “Officers began a pursuit chasing after the car.”
Police did not release additional details about the pursuit, citing the ongoing investigation, though Weisberg said officers used “a tire-deflation device, also known as a spike strip, to deflate the front tires of the vehicle.”
The vehicle later crashed into a parked car near 500 North and Star Crest Drive, Weisberg said.
“The passenger of that vehicle got out and immediately surrendered to Salt Lake City police officers and was safely taken into custody,” he said.
“The driver, however, abandoned that car and ran toward a home. At this point, we are still investigating the connection to that home and the suspect to see if there’s any relation to it,” he said.
“Our officers chased after the suspect to continue to ensure community safety. Based on the limited information that we have at this time, we do believe that the suspect had some sort of weapon,” Weisberg said.
Three Salt Lake City police officers fired shots during the incident, which sent the unidentified suspect to an area hospital in critical condition, he said. Medical aid also was provided at the scene, police said.
Police did not provide any other details Friday about the shooting.
Four officers have been placed on paid administrative leave while SLCPD’s Internal Affairs Unit and an outside agency investigate the officer-involved critical incident, Weisberg said.
