DEARBORN, Mich. – Two Dearborn police officers are recovering after being shot early Friday while attempting to arrest a tow truck driver suspected of brandishing a gun outside a nightclub, authorities said.
Dearborn police said around 2:15 Friday morning they received a call near the Pantheion nightclub for reports of a man arguing with people and displaying a firearm.
Dearborn police said they tried to get a 32-year-old man from Detroit to comply, but he refused, got into a tow truck, and drove away.
Plainclothes special operations officers followed the tow truck to a gas station at Inkster and Van Born roads. That is where the man shot at officers, and police shot back.
Security cameras at MaxxRevv Auto captured the gunfire exchange in the gas station parking lot.
In the video, you can hear shots before the tow truck pulls out and speeds away.
According to Dearborn police, two special operations officers were hit. One in the shoulder, the other in the arm and stomach.
Police released a photo showing one of the officers’ bulletproof vests, which appeared to have two holes in it.
“This morning is just another reminder of how dangerous law enforcement and police work is,” Dearborn Police Chief Issa Shahin said.
After leaving the gas station, police said the tow truck driver threw handguns out of the windows. Two were later recovered.
Police later arrested the driver on Stanfield Street in Inkster.
Residents in the neighborhood where the shooting happened said they were woken up by the gunfire.
“I heard all the gunshots go off over there and I got up and saw all the cop cars go by,” said Dan Kemp, who lives near where the shooting happened.
Kemp said the early-morning chaos startled him but added that he was relieved to learn the officers are expected to recover.
“They got a hard job to do, man. I wouldn’t wish their job on nobody,” he said.
Police said the suspect is in critical condition.
They also added that he has a criminal history and was released on parole in 2021.
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