The driver of a white Mercedes who allegedly tried to run over a police officer in Sunnyvale was nowhere to be found Tuesday.
The driver tried to run down a Santa Clara police officer, who was investigating a car burglary, at the intersection of El Camino Real and Wolfe Road in neighboring Sunnyvale about 5:45 p.m. Monday, according to Sunnyvale Police Capt. Shawn Ahearn.
The officer, who was with a partner, spotted the white Mercedes, which he suspected was stolen, and started walking toward it, when the driver tried to ram him down, police said. The officer immediately fired his weapon at the oncoming Mercedes.
"All we know right now is that he feared for his life, that he was going to be pinned between the vehicles, that he decided to take the force that he did and shoot at the vehicle," Ahearn said.
Sunnyvale PD investigating officer involved shooting at Wolfe and El Camino Real. Please avoid the area. http://t.co/kfG9KC8ceO
— Sunnyvale DPS (@SunnyvaleDPS) February 10, 2015The driver of the Mercedes then took off in the northbound direction on Wolfe Road and hasn't been seen since.
Police don't know if any of those bullets hit the driver, or anyone else who might have been inside the Mercedes. Residents certainly heard the gunfire, though.
“I just walked out to walk my dog and it sounded like fireworks went off," said Julie Barker. "It sounded like 'bang, bang, bang, bang,' and I counted 10 shots I think."
The Santa Clara police officer who fired his weapon is on paid administrative leave, and the Sunnyvale Department of Safety is the lead investigation agency.
