An Arizona Department of Public Safety officer who shot at a man and apparently missed him stands by her patrol vehicle at a motel on the Benson Highway near Park Avenue.
Area law officers searched a busy South Side area for a man who an Arizona Department of Public Safety officer shot at about 1 p.m. Monday.
The officer fired at least one shot at the man, apparently missing him, after the officer tried to pull the man over for a suspected traffic violation on Interstate 10, said Officer Quentin Mehr, a DPS spokesman.
The man, driving a Chevrolet Suburban, led the officer on a brief chase, left the interstate at South Park Avenue and stopped near a motel in the 1000 block of the East Benson Highway, a few blocks east of South Park Avenue, Mehr said.
The officer got out of her car patrol car, the man got out of the Suburban and a confrontation started, Mehr said. He said that is when the officer fired and the man ran.
Mehr did not know precisely what prompted the officer to shoot at the man.
The investigation was in its early stages and Mehr did not know if the man was armed or the Suburban was stolen.
Mehr did not know why the man got into the confrontation with the officer.
The officer was not injured, Mehr said.
He would not identify the officer or say how long she has been with DPS.
DPS officers, sheriff’s deputies and Tucson police searched the area for hours for the man without success. A police helicopter circled overhead.
The man was described as about 5 feet 6 inches tall, wearing black denim shorts and a gray tank top.
Mehr asked anyone spotting the man to dial 911or 88-CRIME. He warned people not to approach the man as he is considered dangerous.
A DPS officer who shot at a suspect stands by her patrol vehicle at the Motel 6 on Benson Highway and and Park.