PHOENIX — A police officer was one of two people taken to the hospital after a crash early Monday morning in Phoenix.
Phoenix Police say it happened just before 4:30 a.m. near the intersection of 19th and Northern avenues.
Video from the scene shows a Phoenix police Tahoe with substantial front-end damage.
Police say the Tahoe and two other vehicles were involved in the crash. The officer involved was responding to a call of a robbery that took place a few blocks from where the crash occurred.
The suspect reportedly assaulted a woman and stole her vehicle. The vehicle was found abandoned in the roadway near where the crash took place.
The officer and one other driver were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police say the officer has since been released from the hospital.
The officer involved has not been identified.
One witness, who didn’t want to share her name, tells ABC15 that she called 911.
“Yes, I did call police,” said the witness. “I was just trying to help her the best that I can.”
She said before the suspect could get away, the owner banged on the window and even climbed on the car.
“When she got on top of the car he kept trying to go back and forth trying to knock her off,” said the witness.
Eventually, she said the woman was thrown off.
“She like flew off the car and rolled like three times,” said the woman.
She told ABC15 that when she got up she had a big knot on her head.
“It was like someone had hit her with a hammer it was all black and blue,” said John Winkler.
He said he saw the woman as well after he swerved to avoid the suspect in the stolen car. He said the suspect tried to turn in front of him.
“I slammed on my brakes, and he decided to go back here again,” said Winkler. “[He] stopped there got out of his vehicle and ran out.”
Police said the woman is expected to be okay and her car was left on the road at 19th Ave and Northern.
We’re told the suspect got in another car and was able to get away.
ABC15 asked police how the crash happened. If they were pursuing the suspect? Police said that’s still under investigation.
