ST. LOUIS — A man was shot late Tuesday night following an altercation with police in downtown St. Louis. He was taken into police custody but has not been charged as of Wednesday afternoon.
Officers responded to multiple reports of a disturbance at about 11 p.m. Tuesday in the area of Tucker Boulevard and Washington Avenue.
According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, a man was brandishing a pistol and randomly firing. Bike officers spotted a man matching the description in the area of 10th Street and Washington Avenue, and a pursuit took place after he ran into an alley in the 900 block of Locust Street.
A responding St. Louis officer, a 38-year-old man with 13 years of service on the police force, drove through the alley and saw the suspect hiding behind a dumpster. Police said the man then stood up and pointed the gun in the officer's direction.
That's when the officer fired several shots at the suspect, who turned and ran a short distance before being taken into custody.
According to the police department, no officers were injured in the incident, but the man identified as a 31-year-old suffered a graze wound to his arm. He was treated for his injuries at a local hospital and was later released into police custody.
Officers were wearing body cameras, according to the department, and the footage will be reviewed as part of an ongoing investigation.
The names of the suspect and officer were not released.
"It's important to us that we're present in the neighborhoods. Proud of the Downtown Bike Unit. They were right there on the spot when the calls were coming out. Unfortunately, it's not uncommon for us to have calls for service for individuals having firearms,” said Lt. Col. Michael Sack, the interim police chief.
After the shooting, the St. Louis interim police chief spoke about gun violence downtown. Watch the clip in the video below.
Wednesday, music played in a plaza nearby over lunch and games.
That is the positivity people want to see in the downtown area.
"I think St. Louis has a lot of potential, so I would like to see us continue to grow and try to put away the bad reputation that we have,” said Taylor Chambers, who lives a couple of blocks away from where the incident occurred.
Police said there had been a number of complaints across the city regarding gun violence and people carrying guns openly throughout the neighborhoods.
More than 1700 shooting incidents were reported throughout St. Louis as of September.
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