ST. LOUIS — A carjacking ended with a St. Louis police officer shooting a suspect in north St. Louis early Monday morning, the police chief confirmed.
The suspect carjacked a later-model red Ford Mustang at 4th and Pine, Police Chief John Hayden told reporters. At about 4:15 a.m., police spotted the vehicle on Natural Bridge Avenue and Goodfellow Boulevard, in the Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood of north St. Louis.
Officers began following the car. The driver didn’t stop and spun out a few blocks down the road in the 1100 block of Clara Avenue, Chief Hayden said. That’s when officers began chasing the suspect on foot.
After for about a block-and-a-half, police said the suspect reached for his waistband. An officer fired and shot the man, Chief Hayden confirmed. The shooting happened behind a home in the 5900 block of Chamberlain Avenue.
The suspect—a man in his 20s—is in critical condition, Chief Hayden said.
At this time, Chief Hayden said to the department’s knowledge the suspect did not fire a shot at the officers. They’re still searching for a weapon.
No officers were hurt and the carjacking victim was not injured.
The officer who shot the man is 25 years old. He has been with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department for nearly two years. He is on administrative leave, which is the department’s protocol.
