Wednesday, February 22, 2017, 9:54 AM
No injuries reported after Officer fires his duty weapon at a fleeing armed suspect.
On Tuesday evening (2-21-17) at approximately 11:30 p.m., officers were sent to Peppy Grill located in the 3400 block of East 10th Street reference 9-1-1 calls of an armed male pointing a gun at oncoming traffic. Calls to 9-1-1 dispatchers provided responding officers a detailed description including the subject was armed.
Responding officers could see through the window of the business a man matching the description provided by the 9-1-1 caller. The officers in an attempt to investigate approached the individual, who was inside the business, and asked him to step outside. Officers could see in the individual’s waistband a handgun magazine. The individual pushed an officer and suddenly began running through the business parking lot.
Additional officers arrived and observed the individual removing a handgun from his waistband as he was running through the parking lot. An officer fired his duty weapon at the individual, but it was later determined that shots missed. Additional 9-1-1 calls indicated that a male was knocking on doors in the 1000 block of Lasalle Street. Responding officers responded, identified and successfully took the suspect into custody It was determined the suspect had outstanding warrants for intimidation and pointing a firearm. Additionally, officers found a small amount of suspected narcotics on the suspect’s person. Officers later found the handgun in the parking lot of the business the suspect is alleged to have possessed during the incident. Detectives determined that the handgun is reported stolen out of Muncie, Indiana.
The suspect has been identified as 20-year-old Trai Sampson of Indianapolis. After being questioned by detectives at IMPD Headquarters, the suspect was arrested for resisting law enforcement, battery on police, narcotics possession, and carrying a handgun without a license. The suspect was transported to the Arrestee Processing Center to be processed. The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office will review the investigative facts of the case and make a charging decision.
A standard investigation will be completed by IMPD’s Internal Affairs Unit to ensure departmental compliance with the department’s use of force standards.