An Arizona police officer used his police cruiser to apprehend an armed suspect, by running into him at full speed. It’s not every day video like this gets released. The man in the street, Mario Valencia, was walking around with a hunting rifle, pointing it at himself and was allegedly threatening to commit suicide before firing a single shot into the air.
In the video, an officer nearest to Mr. Valencia is seen reporting the gun shot over his radio, alerting other officers in the area. The thought of running over the suspect did not occur to them, but to Officer Valencia it did. He immediately put his car into high gear, while other officers waited nearby deciding on their next move. It turned out to be a move that would bring him national attention.
Police experts say that his use of a patrol car to stop Valencia was not something cops normally are supposed to do, but that it was justified because of the danger Valencia posed to the area.
The officer, Michael Rapiejko, was cleared of any wrongdoing.
Watch a cop run into a suspect at full speed:
H/T: Miami Herald | Featured Image: YouTube screen capture
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