TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Police shot and killed a bank robbery suspect who exchanged gunfire twice with Tucson-area officers during a series of incidents in which the suspect stole one patrol car and tried to take another, authorities said. No officers were injured.
The suspect, 31-year-old Jesus Isaac Rael, “had an extensive history involving violent crime and was affiliated with both prison and street gangs,” police said.
Rael served prison terms in Maricopa and Yuma counties for armed robbery and aggravated assault, according to Arizona Department of Corrections records. He was released from prison in 2014.
The first shootout occurred Thursday in southwest Tucson when two Marana police officers tried to stop a man wanted in a Wednesday bank robbery. As the officers took cover, the man stole a police car and drove off, police said.
A carjacking followed in which the suspect ran over the vehicle’s owner, whose injuries were non-life threatening, authorities said.
Tucson police spotted the suspect driving the car in midtown Tucson, where it crashed near the University of Arizona.
Authorities say the man got out and opened fire before he was shot and wounded. He tried to steal another patrol car but was blocked by vehicles driven by arriving officers.
The suspect was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Tucson police on Friday said Officer Matthew Keena, a 3 1/2 year veteran of the department, was involved in the shooting. Police also released photos of the shotgun used to fire shots at Keena.
Police officials said detectives will conduct criminal and administrative investigations of the incident. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department will investigate the gunfire involving Marana police.
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