A race-related and violent incident that began at a Circle K gas station led to a dangerous traffic accident. An officer with the Glendale Police Department and a suspect have both been hospitalized after a wrong-way crash on Wednesday.
According to the report filed on the ABC 15 website, the crash happened near the intersection of 75th and Glendale Avenues at 1:30 p.m. after police were called to a neighborhood Circle K. Eyewitnesses say that a fight had broken out in the parking lot of the convenience store.
According to a statement given by a representative of the Glendale Police Department, the suspect was yelling racial slurs at store employees and had been asked to leave. The suspect then exited the store and began assaulting a disabled veteran who had been sitting in his car.
As he was fighting off his assailant, the veteran drew a gun but did not fire his weapon.
The suspect then left the store property.
A second Glendale Police officer had stopped eastbound traffic and was traveling the wrong way in an attempt to stop the suspect vehicle, which refused to pull over. The suspect’s vehicle and the police cruiser then collided.
Both the police officer and the suspect were taken to an area hospital for treatment. The police officer and the disabled veteran are both expected to be ok. The unidentified suspect remains in the hospital and is listed in critical condition.
Police have not said if the suspect is facing pending charges in the incident.
