Inglewood police were searching for whoever shot an officer in the leg during a traffic stop.
Paramedics were called to Crenshaw Boulevard and 113th Street about 10:25 p.m. Sunday on a report of a wounded officer, county fire dispatch supervisor Bernard Peters said. Officer Benjamin Sanza, 26, was taken to a trauma center, where he was treated and released.
Sanza and his partner, Andrew Tachias, 26, had conducted a traffic stop on a silver 2008 Chevrolet Impala, said Inglewood police Lt. James Madia.
“Immediately after the suspect’s vehicle came to a stop, and (as) the officers were getting out of their patrol car, the suspect or suspects opened fire, striking one officer in the left leg,” Madia said. “The officers took cover behind the police car. Neither officer was able to return fire.”
The Chevrolet sped off, and was found abandoned about 90 minutes later near Prairie Avenue and the Century (105) Freeway, Madia said. The vehicle had been taken in the carjacking of a woman in Long Beach on Saturday night, he said.
One of the suspects was described as a Hispanic man with a medium complexion who was wearing a dark shirt and a baseball cap.
Anyone with more information on the crime was urged to call (310) 412-5246, or (888) 41-CRIME.
