The passenger in a stolen vehicle fired two shots at a UAPD officer Monday morning before leading the officer on a chase through the West University Neighborhood. The stolen car was later found abandoned and suspects are still at large.
The officer began pursuing a white Dodge Stratus around 8:22 a.m. for speeding westbound on East Sixth Street near North Highland Avenue. The passenger shot at the officer when the officer attempted to pull the driver over.
The officer continued to follow the Stratus and was fired on again. The officer eventually lost sight of the vehicle as it reached speeds of 60 to 65 miles per hour.
The car was last seen traveling westbound on West University Boulevard west of North Stone Avenue.
The officer was not injured and there was no visible damage to the UAPD car, according to Sergeant Eugene Mejia, UAPD spokesman.
Tucson Police Department was contacted about the incident and the vehicle was later found just north of West University Boulevard on North Main Avenue. The vehicle had been reported stolen from an apartment complex Sunday morning around 5 a.m., according to reports.
The time between when the shots were fired when and the vehicle was found was a matter of minutes, Mejia said.
Portions of North Euclid Avenue north of East Sixth Street were blocked off Sunday morning to gather evidence.
Mejia said UAPD and TPD will work together on the case, with TPD investigating the stolen car and UAPD investigating the aggravated assault.
He said police are currently looking for two suspects, although they are not sure if more people were in the car.
“We’re trying to develop leads. We’ll look at what was discovered in the car and try to match it up with individuals,” he said.
The vehicle will be processed and police will look for forensic evidence, such as fingerprints.
“There are a number of avenues we have in identifying suspects,” Mejia said.
The last time a UAPD officer was fired at was July 13, 2003, in a similar incident. An officer attempted to pull over the driver of a black Mitsubishi Eclipse near North Campbell Avenue and East Elm Street when the driver fired at the officer. The officer pursued the vehicle, but eventually lost sight of him.
No one has been arrested in that case, said Mejia.
Police are asking anyone with information about the occupants of the Dodge Stratus to call 88-CRIME or either TPD or UAPD.