Two North Texas police officers narrowly escaped serious injuries during a traffic stop. It happened Sunday night in Corsicana with the moments a driver tried to get away captured on a store surveillance camera. NBC 5’s Alicia Barrera shows us what happened.
A traffic stop ended with an officer being dragged and another being hit late Sunday night in Corsicana.
According to Chief of Police Robert Johnson, Sgt. Dan McAninch pulled over a silver sedan near the 700 block of N. Beaton Street. The driver pulled into a gas station near 1st Street and McAninch called for backup, citing the driver’s behavior.
Johnson confirmed the department is looking into a surveillance video clip posted on TikTok as part of their investigation. Police said Meslap was wearing a blue T-shirt.
The video clip begins with Meslap standing near the trunk of his car. The suspect then begins to walk toward the passenger side of his car, gets in, and closes the door. The officer runs after him, opens the passenger door, and tries to pull Meslap out of the vehicle.
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
The video shows Meslap put his car in drive as a second officer drives up. Meslap rams into the officer’s vehicle. According to Johnson, the second officer was hit but had minor injuries.
Police said the suspect then put his car into reverse. While McAninch let go of the suspect’s arm, the officer was dragged several feet by the car door.
A third officer arrived at the scene and was uninjured. The surveillance video posted online shows two of the officers drawing their guns however, no shots were fired.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
“The officers made the quick decision not to fire due to the passenger of the vehicle, who was not a threat, as well as the officer on the driver’s side of the vehicle being trapped in the line of fire,” Johnson said in a statement.
One officer did deploy a liquid pepper spray gun from the passenger side of the vehicle.
Meslap sped off but police said he was arrested less than two miles away. Meslap now faces multiple charges.
- (2) Aggravated Assault Against a Public Servant
- (2) Criminal Mischief
- DWI
- Resisting Arrest, Search, or Transport
- Evading Arrest and Detention with Motor Vehicle
Both officers only suffered minor injuries and did not require medical attention.
