IMPD officer in 'serious but stable' condition, suspect injured in Fountain Square shootout
Update, Feb. 28, 2022: Indianapolis police Monday night identified the suspect as 31-year-old Mylik Hill.
Hill remained in custody at Methodist Hospital on a warrant for theft and resisting law enforcement related to an incident in January. He was also wanted for a parole violation from a conviction for robbery and possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, according to police.
Original Story: An Indianapolis police officer was in “serious but stable” condition and another man was critically wounded Sunday night after a shootout in Fountain Square.
By Monday afternoon, Indianapolis police said the officer was expected to be OK but released no further details.
The officer, identified only as a "one-year officer who was in field training," was taken to Eskenazi hospital after the shooting. A man who police said fired on officers was also shot in the exchange. He was initially listed in critical condition, but his condition was upgraded later Monday morning to serious.
IMPD Lt. Shane Foley told reporters at the scene that the shooting occurred after officers responded to the 1600 block of Lexington Avenue on a report of a vehicle crash shortly after 10 p.m.
As police were en route to the crash, dispatchers told officers a man in a red jacket was exposing himself, Foley said. They also reported a man in a red car was intoxicated, “acting strange” and headed south on State Avenue.
Officers found a man wearing a red jacket in a red Buick in the 1600 block of Woodlawn Avenue, a street two blocks south of Lexington Avenue. When police approached, the man fled "within seconds."
“The officers told the man: ‘Stop. Police,’” Foley said during a media briefing at the scene. “There was an exchange of gunfire between at least one officer and the suspect in the area of the alley north of 1600 Woodlawn Avenue.”
A SWAT team found the man shortly after 11 p.m. in the 900 block of Dawson Street, less than half a mile from where the shootout occurred. The man had been shot at least once, Foley told reporters, and police found a handgun next to him.
When asked about the initial report of a crash, Foley said police believe there was a crash on Lexington, adding: "That’s still something that we’re trying to verify. That’s not where officers located the suspect.” The department later said witnesses told officers a red Buick left the scene of the accident.
Foley noted police are trained to “handle rapidly evolving situations.” He referenced the July 17, 2017 shooting of Southport police Lt. Aaron Allan, who was shot 11 times while trying to help a man who had been in a car wreck. That man, Jason Dane Brown, was convicted on murder charges last week.
“We never know what's going to happen,” Foley said. “We showed up to a report of an accident, and, at some point, there's an exchange of gunfire.”
Hours after the shooting, IMPD cars were stationed around many of the surrounding streets on State Avenue and between Prospect Street and Lexington Avenue. The department’s bus-like incident command vehicle could be seen among a line of flashing blue and red lights.
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett hours after the shooting offered his prayers and praised IMPD’s bravery.
"In the face of danger, the officers of (IMPD) put their lives on the line to keep our community safe. Tonight we bear witness to that selfless action. Our prayers are with the officer shot, his loved ones, and the entire IMPD family," Hogsett tweeted.
Law enforcement officials said IMPD's critical incident response team will conduct a criminal investigation of the shooting. The department's internal affairs division also will investigate.
The officer who fired his gun has been placed on administrative leave, as is standard in shootings involving police. It is not clear if that officer is the same officer who was shot.
Police ask anyone with information about the shooting to call Detective Sergeant Leslie Vanbuskirk at 317-327-3475 or email her at Leslie.Vanbuskirk@indy.gov. Anonymous tips can be given to Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-8477.
"If anybody has any doorbell cameras, if they saw anything," Foley said, "we are asking people to come forward and provide that information."
Police cars began to leave the area about 1 a.m. But officials said detectives would remain at the scene into the early morning hours to gather forensic evidence.
In the face of danger, the officers of @impdnews put their lives on the line to keep our community safe. Tonight we bear witness to that selfless action.
Our prayers are with the officer shot, his loved ones, and the entire IMPD family.— Mayor Joe Hogsett (@IndyMayorJoe) February 28, 2022
IndyStar reporter Sarah Nelson contributed to this article.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indianapolis officer shot in 'serious but stable' condition
