LAWRENCE, IN (WISH/CNN) - A man is dead in Lawrence, IN, after a gun battle with police on Tuesday. They say the shootout broke out in the middle of a busy roadway.
The first crime scene is at Big Boy Hobbies. At Hobbies, the suspect allegedly robbed the store at gunpoint then drove off in his black mustang.
"Our officers got behind that vehicle very quickly and went to stop it, and the driver of that vehicle, who's also a suspect in the robbery, failed to yield for the officers who were trying to stop that vehicle,” said Deputy Chief Gary Woodruff of the Lawrence Police.
Then a chase ensued, and police say it ended when the suspect crashed the Mustang at the second crime scene. "The suspect got out of the vehicle and carjacked a second vehicle with victims inside of that vehicle,” Woodruff said.
Officers say the suspect used a gun to force a woman down Post Road. Police followed until the vehicle crashed near where the robbery happened, making it the third and final crime scene.
"The vehicle came through, slid and hit the median hard, probably about 20 feet away from my truck. And, a guy got out and just started shooting at the police,” said witness Craig Waller. The woman was still in the car when Waller heard about four to five shots before police returned fire near a busy intersection.
But the gunfire wasn't confined to just the intersection. Signs of a gun battle aren't hard to find. A restaurant now has crime tape around it and at least four bullet holes in the window. In one window, a bullet is still lodged in the window frame.
"It took him about 10 seconds to climb out of the car in his socks and start shooting at the officer,” Waller said.
Multiple Lawrence officers fired at the suspect. He died at the scene. No officers were injured."It would seem the officers exercised some significant discipline when it came to trying to neutralize the threat, address the ongoing threat and save, save lives,” Woodruff said.
Police have not yet released the suspect's name.
As for the two carjacking victims, they did not have physical injuries, but were taken to the hospital to be checked out.
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