ALEXANDRIA POLICE DEPARTMENT
Public Information Office
2003 Mill Road
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
703.838.4636
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APRIL 29, 2004 10:00 P.M.
Alexandria Police Investigate Officer-Involved Shooting;
Suspect Tried to Run Over Officers with Vehicle Wanted in Carjacking
An Alexandria man is in police custody after attempting to run over two Alexandria police officers. The suspect is recovering from a gunshot wound to the left shoulder which he sustained when he tried to hit the officers and one officer shot him.
Today, at approximately 7:16 p.m., Alexandria police stopped a vehicle at the intersection of South Washington and Wolfe streets. The vehicle, a black 1997 Mercedes, was wanted by Prince George’s County police in connection with an armed carjacking. An unmarked police van and a marked cruiser boxed in the Mercedes, with the van in front and the cruiser behind.
As the two officers in plain clothes approached the Mercedes from the front, the suspect driver accelerated, attempting to hit the officers. Officers jumped out of the way and one officer, a six-year-veteran, fired at the suspect. After the suspect vehicle rammed the van, it continued north on Washington Street with officers in pursuit.
The suspect turned left onto westbound King Street and struck a citizen’s vehicle there. One occupant of that car suffered a minor injury. The suspect then turned right onto North Alfred Street where it struck an SUV. No one in that car was injured. The suspect then bailed out of the Mercedes and ran west into an alley in the 100 block of North Alfred Street.
An off-duty Alexandria police officer in the area ran after the suspect as other officers arrived on the scene. The suspect was found hiding in a trash dumpster and was taken into custody. He had sustained a gunshot wound to left shoulder.
The suspect was transported by ambulance to INOVA Fairfax Hospital where he is being treated for a non-life-threatening injury. He is in stable condition and in police custody. The suspect has been identified as Chris Coward, a 25-year-old Alexandria man. He is charged with Attempt Felonious Assault.
No officers were injured. Both the Criminal Investigations Section and the Internal Investigations Unit will investigate further.
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