Knimrod
03-20-2006, 10:52 PM
Lansing: Armed suspect remains on the loose
March 20, 2006
Lansing State Journal
DELTA TWP. — Police are warning the public to be on the lookout for a man they say is armed and dangerous who shot and injured an Eaton County sheriff’s sergeant early Monday morning.
Sgt. Jeff Lutz was shot in the shoulder, treated and then released from a local hospital. The shooting occurred between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m.
Lutz returned fire at the suspect, said Eaton County Sheriff Mike Raines. He was unsure, however, how many shots were fired by Lutz and the suspect.
“We have some tips coming in,” Raines said, “But we caution people not to approach this man because he is armed and dangerous.”
The sergeant encountered the man behind the West Town Plaza at Saginaw and Clark Road while on patrol, Raines said. Lutz was shot as he tried to approach the man.
The sheriff’s department described the suspect as a black man about 25 years old, medium build, wearing dark clothing. Police said the suspect got away on foot.
Officers immediately cordoned off an area from Waverly Road to Clark Road and from West Saginaw Street north to Willow Highway and set up a perimeter. They waited until daybreak and began searching the area about 7 a.m.
“We didn’t want to go in there and mess up possible tracks that would throw off the scent of our dogs,” Raines said of the reason they wait almost three hours to start the foot search in neighborhoods. “And we wanted to make sure we could do it and do it safely. We didn’t need another officer to get shot.”
The massive manhunt involving about 40 officers and at least one helicopter was called off about 10:30 a.m., Raines said.
“It’s possible he had a car parked somewhere and he was able to escape,” Raines said. “It’s also possible he lives in that area or has a friend in an apartment. We just don’t know.”
Officers early Monday afternoon also were searching for evidence in the yards of two different homes in the 700 block of Clark Road.
Nearby St. Gerard School, a Catholic elementary and middle school with about 560 students, was put on a two-hour delay after police alerted school leaders about the situation. It was closed soon afterward because the suspect still was on the loose.
Principal Lynn Fuller said she hopes radio and television announcements went out early enough to keep families from arriving in the area.
“I’m sure it caused all kinds of havoc,” Fuller said.
Meanwhile, all of Waverly Community Schools and Windemere Park Charter Academy were placed on lockdown as a precaution. Doors were secured and recesses canceled until police called off the search.
The schools were outside the cordoned area.
Afternoon kindergarten and Early Childhood Special Education classes in Waverly also were canceled because of the lockdown. Mid-day bus runs also were canceled, requiring parents with children in morning sessions to arrange transportation.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Eaton County Sheriff's Department at 372-8217.
Link to story (http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060320/NEWS01/603200352/1150)
March 20, 2006
Lansing State Journal
DELTA TWP. — Police are warning the public to be on the lookout for a man they say is armed and dangerous who shot and injured an Eaton County sheriff’s sergeant early Monday morning.
Sgt. Jeff Lutz was shot in the shoulder, treated and then released from a local hospital. The shooting occurred between 3 a.m. and 3:30 a.m.
Lutz returned fire at the suspect, said Eaton County Sheriff Mike Raines. He was unsure, however, how many shots were fired by Lutz and the suspect.
“We have some tips coming in,” Raines said, “But we caution people not to approach this man because he is armed and dangerous.”
The sergeant encountered the man behind the West Town Plaza at Saginaw and Clark Road while on patrol, Raines said. Lutz was shot as he tried to approach the man.
The sheriff’s department described the suspect as a black man about 25 years old, medium build, wearing dark clothing. Police said the suspect got away on foot.
Officers immediately cordoned off an area from Waverly Road to Clark Road and from West Saginaw Street north to Willow Highway and set up a perimeter. They waited until daybreak and began searching the area about 7 a.m.
“We didn’t want to go in there and mess up possible tracks that would throw off the scent of our dogs,” Raines said of the reason they wait almost three hours to start the foot search in neighborhoods. “And we wanted to make sure we could do it and do it safely. We didn’t need another officer to get shot.”
The massive manhunt involving about 40 officers and at least one helicopter was called off about 10:30 a.m., Raines said.
“It’s possible he had a car parked somewhere and he was able to escape,” Raines said. “It’s also possible he lives in that area or has a friend in an apartment. We just don’t know.”
Officers early Monday afternoon also were searching for evidence in the yards of two different homes in the 700 block of Clark Road.
Nearby St. Gerard School, a Catholic elementary and middle school with about 560 students, was put on a two-hour delay after police alerted school leaders about the situation. It was closed soon afterward because the suspect still was on the loose.
Principal Lynn Fuller said she hopes radio and television announcements went out early enough to keep families from arriving in the area.
“I’m sure it caused all kinds of havoc,” Fuller said.
Meanwhile, all of Waverly Community Schools and Windemere Park Charter Academy were placed on lockdown as a precaution. Doors were secured and recesses canceled until police called off the search.
The schools were outside the cordoned area.
Afternoon kindergarten and Early Childhood Special Education classes in Waverly also were canceled because of the lockdown. Mid-day bus runs also were canceled, requiring parents with children in morning sessions to arrange transportation.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Eaton County Sheriff's Department at 372-8217.
Link to story (http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060320/NEWS01/603200352/1150)