The officer’s gun accidentally fired and the bullet hit his hand.

ST. PETERSBURG – An undercover St.Petersburg police officer was seriously injured Friday (Sept. 9) during the arrest of a reckless driver.

The incident began about 11 p.m. when uniformed officers attempted a traffic stop on a 2015 Toyota Corolla that was driving recklessly on 28th Street S near 11th Avenue, according to the St. Petersburg Police Department. The driver sped off at a high rate of speed but officers did not pursue him.

A short time later, undercover officers in the violent crimes task force threw stopsticks in the road on Freemont Terrace S near 29th Street and flattened the Toyota’s tires.. The Toyota continued on flat tires, and the driver, a-16-year old boy, jumped out of the rolling car and ran.

An undercover officer jumped into the rolling car to try to stop it just as it hit the back of an unoccupied Pinellas Sheriff’s vehicle. Upon impact, the officer’s gun accidentally discharged and the bullet struck his hand, police said.

The officer has serious, but non-life threatening injuries, to his hand. He is being treated at Bayfront Health Hospital. His name will not be released because he works undercover.

The teenaged driver was arrested and charged with fleeing and eluding, resisting arrest without violence, and operating a vehicle without a valid driver’s license.

For information about the St. Petersburg Police Department, go to police.stpete.org.

St. Petersburg Police | Police Officer Injured | Police Officer Shot | TB Reporter

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