A Prince George’s County police officer was dragged down a four-lane stretch of Crain Highway in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, early Sunday morning after attempting to stop a burglary suspect from speeding away.
Two officers were responding to reports of a burglary in the 7600 block of Crain Highway around 1 a.m. When they arrived, both officers saw a van backed up to the front doors of a closed gas station.
As the officers approached the building, two suspects ran out and into the van, according to police.
One officer opened the van’s door and attempted to remove the driver.
“At that point, the driver sped off with the officer remaining halfway in the van,” Chief Malik Aziz said at a press conference. “The second officer discharged his duty weapon one time, striking the driver.”
But the driver continued to flee with the officer still hanging from the vehicle. The van crossed four lanes of Crain Highway before the officer was thrown off the car on South Osborne Road.
The suspects were chased for about 15 minutes before being caught and taken into custody at Branch Avenue and Old Silver Hill Road in Temple Hills.
The injured officer and suspect have been released from the hospital.
Both suspects will be charged with assault, burglary and related charges, according to police.
An initial search of the gas station revealed the suspects had left a pry bar and other burglary tools. The office area was also rummaged through and the ATM had been tampered with.
Police said the van being used by the suspects is believed to have been stolen from a nearby church earlier in the evening.
“Detectives are looking into whether [the suspects] are linked to other burglaries at this time; their methodologies match more than a dozen burglars,” Aziz said.
The officer who shot the suspect will be placed on routine administrative leave, according to the department.
Below is a map of where the alleged burglary took place. [google_map latitude=”38.78441297002928″ longitude=”-76.79253622885646″ zoom=”15″ height=”300px” location_label=”” dynamic_map=”false”]
