SPRINGFIELD — A suspect in a stolen vehicle fired shots at Springfield police officers early Friday morning as they conducted an auto-theft detail in the city.
The incident began around 2:45 a.m. when officers were dispatched to Linnell Street in response to reports of a suspicious vehicle and an individual attempting to break into cars.
The officers, working undercover in an unmarked cruiser, located the reported stolen vehicle from West Springfield and observed the suspect trying to enter another car on Rathbun Street.
After the suspect fled the scene in the stolen car, the undercover officers followed discreetly, awaiting backup from marked police units.
At the intersection of Hood and Peer Streets, the suspect exited the stolen vehicle, a black 2016 Ford Escape, and fired four gunshots toward the officers.
The officers were unharmed, and the suspect returned to the vehicle and sped off, driving erratically through the city streets.
Later, the abandoned stolen vehicle was found by assisting officers on Derryfield Avenue.
Despite a search by officers and K-9 units, the suspect remains at large.
The Springfield Police Department is now seeking assistance from residents in the East Forest Park neighborhood.
Anyone with video footage showing suspicious activity between 3:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. on Derryfield Avenue is urged to contact the Detective Bureau at 413-787-6355.
