Fort Worth police say officers were fired on multiple times Tuesday during a police chase that ended in a crash that hospitalized three people.
According to police, the chase came to a close when the driver of a stolen vehicle crashed into a pickup truck and trailer on the frontage road for NE Loop 820 and Denton Highway/U.S. 377 in Haltom City.
The driver of the pickup was evaluated at the scene while a passenger in the truck was hospitalized in stable condition. Two ran from the stolen car after the crash but were taken into custody a short time later with minimal effort, police said. Those two people were hospitalized after the crash as a precaution.
Fort Worth Chief of Police Neil Noakes said Tuesday afternoon that the chase began when officers tried to pull over the driver of the stolen car. Minutes before, one of the department's FLOCK cameras identified the vehicle as having been reported stolen and officers moved in to make a stop.
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The female driver refused to pull over, Noakes said, and the male passenger began shooting at officers multiple times.
"The suspect who fired at the officers was someone we have been searching for as part of our violent crime initiative. He was on our radar. Because of the technology we have with the FLOCK cameras, we were able to locate the vehicle that he was in and take him into custody but not before officers were shot at," Noakes said in a press conference shortly after the incident.
Noakes heaped praise on his officers for their response and for bravery for continuing to pursue the car even as they were being targeted with gunfire.
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"After being shot at they continued to pursue someone that they knew was a danger to the communities and Fort Worth. Their lives were in danger but they did their jobs and they did it professionally," Noakes said. "This happens every day but you don't always see it. I could not be more proud of these officers and the hard work done every single day by Fort Worth police officers to keep our communities safe."
Noakes said none of the Fort Worth officers returned fire.
Noakes said two weapons were recovered at the scene of the crash including a long gun and handgun, and that investigators will determine which guns were fired at police.
The female driver, identified by police Thursday as 23-year-old Jessica Jean Jarvis, was arrested for evading and unauthorized use of a vehicle. The man, identified by police on Thursday as 23-year-old Eliseo Suarez Jr., was arrested for three outstanding felony warrants, two for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one for possession of a firearm by a felon. The names of the man and woman have not yet been released.
Noakes said Suarez would be facing additional charges.
The Major Case Unit will be investigating this incident.
