News

Car thief shoots police officer with bow and arrow

SAUK CENTRE, Minn. — A deputy in Minnesota was shot with a bow and arrow during a standoff with a suspected car thief.

It began in Osakis. That's where deputies say the suspect, a 31-year-old man, stole a black pickup truck and began driving toward Sauk Centre. Once in town, he drove into parked cars, through backyards and eventually into a garage. He then ran into a home. Neighbors and a nearby school were evacuated.

"Went out for a run when I came back 45 minutes later there was a whole bunch of cop cars. I asked if I could get back in my house and they said no there was an active shooter in the area," Ryan Ebnet told WCCO.

When officers went into the home, they say the suspect appeared from the second floor with a compound bow and shot Deputy Paul Orvis in the forearm with a target arrow.

TRENDING NOW:

Officers returned fire, hitting the man in the shoulder, hand and buttocks. After a two-hour standoff they shocked him with a Taser, took him into custody and then brought him to the St. Cloud Hospital. Orvis will also need surgery, and is expected to make a full recovery.

"When we get to it you have the shaft coming out this far from the top of this arm and at the bottom coming out this far. It's fortunate he was shot with a target arrow and not a hunting arrow," said Sheriff Don Gudmundson.

As they return to their homes, neighbors were also counting their blessings. "It's scary. I could've been home. You never know what can happen," said Stephanie Sommars.

Gudmundson says the suspect used a bow and arrow that he found inside the home he broke into.

Investigators are still trying to determine why the suspect stole the vehicle in the first place.

CNN/WCCO

Most Read