Suspects shoot at officer leading to chase and four arrests early Monday, police say
A Tacoma Police officer was shot at by young men driving a stolen car, who stopped and fired multiple rounds through their window during a drive-by shooting in Tacoma early Monday morning, police said.
A 19-year-old man and 18-year-old man and two juvenile males were arrested for investigation of multiple gun- and assault-related charges after shooting at police officer, police said.
Officers saw shots coming from a car at 1:22 a.m. at the Alta Apartments at 97th Street and Steele Street, said Sgt. Darren Moss, spokesperson for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.
The suspects shot straight in the direction of an officer, Tacoma police confirmed in a press release Monday afternoon. The police cruiser was undamaged.
Police chased the car for six minutes until the driver lost control and crashed into a ditch near state Route 512 and Steele Street South. The people inside ran from the car at 1:28 a.m. and were chased down by police. Officers took multiple guns from the suspects.
At some point in the chase, a suspect shot himself in the hand. The car caught fire for an unknown reason and was extinguished by the Tacoma Fire Department.
All four suspects were put into custody by 1:30 a.m., police said. All suspects were taken a local hospital. The two adults were arrested and booked into Pierce County Jail and the 17-year-old and 14-year-old into the Remann Hall juvenile detention center.
The car was stolen.
All four suspects are facing charges of aggravated assault, drive-by shooting, unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of stolen property, Tacoma police said.
Pierce County sheriff’s deputies later found the alleged victim of the shooting, Moss said.
“He was driving through, and they pulled up next to him and started shooting so he shot back,” Moss said. “We recovered at least 25 shell casings in the apartment complex.”
The victim’s car had bullet holes in it as did several other cars in the apartment complex, Moss said.
This story was originally published August 7, 2023 at 11:43 AM.
