Virginia

Park Police Shoot Suspect Involved in Chase in Fairfax County

The suspect is in critical condition, police say

U.S. Park Police shot a suspect involved in a pursuit in the Mt. Vernon area of Fairfax County, Virginia, on Friday night, police said.

About 7:42 p.m., park police officers were pursuing a man who was wanted in connection to a previously reported crash on southbound George Washington Parkway, Sgt. James Dingeldein said.

The driver led park police officers and Fairfax County officers on a chase on the GW Parkway, Dingeldein said.

Eventually, the suspect's SUV left the parkway, and the suspect's SUV crashed at the intersection of Ft. Hunt Road and Alexandria Avenue, Dingeldein said.

That intersection is where police-involved shooting happened, he said. It is not clear if the shooting happened before the SUV crashed or after.

The suspect was taken to a hospital in critical condition, Dingeldein said.

No officers were hurt, Dingeldein said. The suspect was the only person in the SUV, he said.

Residents said they were startled during the commotion of the shooting and crash.

"We heard a loud boom. We weren't quite sure what it was. We thought it could have been either be a gunshot or the loud crash," resident Ted Godbout said.

Editor's Note: A previous version erroneously reported that shots were fired at Park Police officers.

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