TONOPAH, Ariz. (WSVN) — Authorities in Arizona are crediting a Good Samaritan with saving the life of a state trooper on the side of a highway, after he shot and killed a suspect who was attacking the officer.
Arizona Department of Public Safety director Col. Frank Milstead said a man ambushed the trooper on Interstate 10 near the border of Arizona and California, according to Fox 10.
The trooper was heading to a call from a driver who said someone was shooting at their car, when he came across a rollover crash.
As the trooper started blocking off lanes of traffic with flares, the suspect ambushed him, shooting him in the right shoulder and then physically attacking him.
According to Milstead, the suspect was on top of the trooper, beating him and striking his head on the pavement. That’s when the Good Samaritan spotted the attack and pulled over to help.
Milstead said the man retrieved a gun from his car and told the suspect to stop attacking the trooper. When the suspect refused, the man shot him.
The suspect died at the scene, and the man used the trooper’s radio to call for help.
Milstead said the officer needed surgery for the gunshot wound in his shoulder, but is expected to make a full recovery.
But it could have turned out much worse if not for the man who stopped to help.
“I don’t know if my trooper would be alive today without his assistance,” Milstead said.
The investigation is ongoing and the identities of the trooper and suspect have not yet been released.
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